Living in the Present
by PanicFOB
Summary: Hermione needs time and answers. At the end of Dumbledore's memorial, during her somber conversation with Harry and Ron, she gets a brilliant idea. Will traveling back to the Marauders' era be a solution for Hermione or a new problem altogether? She hopes to return to Harry and Ron at the exact moment that she left them, but a certain animagus might screw up all her plans.
1. Chapter 1

Hello all! This is my first serious fanfiction. I usual just read fanfics obsessively, but I love the Sirius/Hermione ship and I hadn't been able to find a story with the exact ending that I wanted. SO I decided to just write it myself. I, of course, want the story to be enjoyable and possible to read, but I do not necessarily care about making it perfect. I want this to be my fun writing away from my academic writing. I would love to receive constructive criticism if it is pretty important to the readability of the story, but I don't care as much about the minor errors. I plan to update once a week (more if possible) and will try to keep the chapters around 2,000 words each. I have a detailed plan for the story but am not quite sure how many chapters it will be. I'm thinking at least 25, but no promises. Also, I promise to never abandon this story, even if it sometimes takes me longer than usual to update. Abandoned stories frustrate me! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy every word.

Chapter One

"We'll be there, Harry," said Ron.

"What?"

"At your aunt and uncle's house," said Ron. "And then we'll go with you, wherever you're going."

"No—" said Harry quickly; he had not counted on this, he had meant them to understand that he was undertaking this most dangerous journey alone.

"You said to us before," said Hermione quietly, "that there was time to turn back if we wanted to…" and then she tailed off. She had intended the statement as a reassurance to Harry that they would not turn their backs on him, but a taunting idea struck her mind mid-sentence. The words "turn back" and "time" floated around in her head forcefully.

Harry looked worried. Hermione swayed in place, feeling suddenly weighed down now more than ever by horcruxes, Dumbledore's unexpected death, and an impossible hunt. For too long now, her world had been pummeled by the unexplainable, the illogical, the magical. In such a reason-based mind as Hermione's, even the beauty of magic could often be frustrating.

"Is everything all right, Hermione?" asked Ron with a loving tone.

"Yes, of course. I just need to run to the toilet. If you'll excuse me…" she dashed off without further explanation. Her mind raced furiously over the logistics of her plan. She could plan it just right so that she would be back the moment after she left. Her skills with time surpassed most other wizards and witches. She knew how to make things clean-cut, precise. Hermione raced up to Gryffindor tower, into the sixth year girls' dormitory, and grabbed a small, beaded bag from under her bed.

"Accio time-turner" she whispered, even though no one was in the room to hear her. She felt nervous and guilty, but her mind needed time to _go back_. It needed clarifications. It needed all those damned missing pieces of the puzzle. Shakily, she gave the artifact just the right amount of turns and then took a deep breath as she let go and it rested against her chest.

It hadn't been her proudest moment, steeling that time-turner from Dumbledore's desk at the beginning of sixth year, but she felt it imperative to have access to the passages of time during this maddening war. She only expected to have to use the object for small leaps in time, such as if they make a mistake that gets one of them captured or injured by a death eater, but this giant leap in time could prove exponentially useful in their search for the horcruxes, and it would also give her weeks, maybe even months, to prepare herself for the trials of the future. She could stay in the past for practically as long as she wanted without losing any _real_ time.

It was bold and dangerous, but Hermione had made the leap from June of 1997 to August of 1977. When the slight tightening feeling dispersed, she opened her eyes to the nearly unchanged sixth year girls' dormitory. Her overworked mind hadn't quite considered whether or not she would be allowed to stay at Hogwarts during her visit, but she figured a quick chat with a somewhat youthful Dumbledore would resolve many of her worries.

She walked across the room, out the door, and made her way to the headmaster's office, making sure not to be spotted by any professors lingering during the summer holidays. Unsure of a password, she started naming off various candy names. None worked. Soon, the gargoyles moved to Dumbledore exiting his office.

"Why, hello! And who might you be young lady?"

"Hermione, sir. I was on my way up to see you, but I didn't have the password."

"Ahh…" he said understandingly, and then he mentioned the name of some leader of a Goblin rebellion. Even with her always-absorbent brain, she felt that such a difficult password was unnecessary.

"Sir, have you thought of using easier passwords such as lemon drops or every flavored beans?"

"What an interesting idea," he pondered for a moment but then refocused and said, "Let us return to my office so that I can make sense of your appearance Miss Hermione."

He waved his hand toward the now-revealed door, allowing her to enter first. She stepped in and nervously took a seat in a cozy grey chair across from his desk. It felt strange sitting across from a man whom she had just been mourning. If only she could tell him all that she knew, but her sense of rule-following kept her from influencing the timeline so drastically as soon as she had gotten here. She looked into the man's eyes and thought _Please don't die_.

"Now, who are you exactly, and how did you come to be at Hogwarts?"

"My name is Hermione Granger. I am a muggleborn witch. I just finished my sixth year at Hogwarts, but in the year 1997." She stopped for a moment to take in his reaction. Dumbledore's face was stone. She continued, "I time traveled here because there are some severe situations going on in my time, and I needed some answers and a break from the weight of it all. I was hoping that you would allow me to stay here for a while as one of the seventh year students. I could claim to be a transfer."

Dumbledore sat quietly, thinking hard for at least ten minutes. Finally, and to Hermione's great relief, he said, "I'll allow it, but I have some rules for you. First, you must go back at some point Miss Granger. Don't get attached to this time. Second, try not to change things from how they would normally occur. Third, do not tell anyone else from this time that you are not from this time. Understood?"

Hermione nodded, feeling confident that she could easily stick to the rules that she had practically already set for herself.

"Now, I'm sure you don't want to stay in the castle almost entirely alone for a month. I'll call in a favor so that you'll have somewhere else to stay until September."

"Wow, thank you, sir. Of whom are you calling this favor?"

"A lovely wizarding family, the Potters. I know they'll be happy to take you in."

Hermione stiffened, but tried not to make a face. She didn't want to reveal that she was connected to the Potters in any way. She certainly had to practice keeping a straight, unknowing face around all the people of this time.

Dumbledore did not seem to notice her reaction. "Why don't you head down to the hospital wing? I presume you know where it is. Madame Pomfrey can have a look at you, make sure your health is well after all that time travel. Then, you can stay the night there, and in the morning I will accompany you to the Potters' estate."

"Yes, sir. I'll be on my way." She gave him a swift nod and exited his office. Dumbledore was strangely more serious and strict in this time. She still admired him, but she missed the odd, whimsical man of her time. She walked slowly toward the hospital wing, admiring the statues and suits of armor, the draping and alcoves, and all the paintings she passed on the way. Her sixth year had been stressful to the extent that not once had she appreciated the beautiful castle that was her home away from home.

That night, after Madam Pomfrey had done a thorough inspection of Hermione's health and Hermione had eaten a small meal that a house elf brought up for her, she lay awake for many hours thinking about anything and everything. It was the first time in a year that Hermione had time to just rest and contemplate. She didn't have to think about schoolwork or the constant threat of Voldemort and death eaters, even though they still had not been defeated. For once she could consider people. She thought about Dumbledore and the importance he has always had in the wizarding world. She thought about Harry and Ron, hoping that when she returned they would be none the wiser to her travels. She thought about the worry etched in Harry's eyebrows as she left them, and for a moment it felt that that would be the last time he would ever look at her as a best friend, but Hermione didn't know why she felt that way. Then, she thought about James Potter… how little she knew. She knew some hard facts about the man, all including dates and such, but she knew nothing about his character, his emotions, his essence. She felt nervous, but also very excited to spend a month getting to know the man that was responsible for Harry's existence.

Suddenly, an unconsidered fact popped into her mind. She realized that in the summer of 1977 Sirius Black had already moved out of his family home and in with James Potter. Her nerves increased tenfold. She certainly knew what a character the aged Sirius Black could be, but she could only imagine the sorts of things his teenager self got up to. How would she handle herself around these martyrs in their merely hormonal states? And how much worse it would be if Remus Lupin ever visited! Yikes! How could she keep her secret, find useful information, and remain unattached to this time in the presence of ones that needed understanding and saving. She hadn't even met them yet, but she wanted to warn them of all the horrible events so near in their futures.

Finally, she thought of the loathsome Peter Pettigrew, and bile rose up in her throat. She certainly wouldn't be able to look at him without sending a nasty curse his way. When she drifted off to sleep, her dreams were just as thoughtful. They took her through the ups and downs she had with Ron during her sixth year and then floated on to fantasies of happy times where such thing as a death eater had never existed and Tom Riddle was born a squib.

In the late hours of the morning Hermione's eyes fluttered open just a moment before Dumbledore entered the hospital wing. "Good morning, Miss Granger. I hope you got a good night's rest."

"Not really, professor, but thanks for the sentiment. And yourself?"

"No, I was up all night studying the effects of transfiguration on certain rare metals."

"Ahh. Well I am ready to travel to the Potters' if they've agreed to have me."

"They did, quite enthusiastically. It seems that their son James and his friend Sirius have been causing a ruckus all summer. They hope that a young female presence in the house will cause the lads to straighten up their acts. I hope that it doesn't do just the opposite."

Hermione smirked, knowing Sirius' reputation, but she felt assured that she could straighten James up with promises of help in achieving Lily's affection.

Dumbledore waved Hermione over to the large fireplace at the end of the row of beds. She made sure that she had her small bag with her and allowed Dumbledore to use the floo first so that he could make introductions before she arrived. Once Dumbledore had disappeared, Hermione took a shaky breath, threw down the powder, and said "Potter's residence!" with all the courage she could muster. That familiar feeling came back to her like she was sliding through a chute. Everything was dark and blurry for a moment. Her heart rate increased, and then drastically stopped as her feet hit firm ground and her eyes were flooded with light. Momentarily blinded, she only knew she had made it to the right place when she heard Dumbledore say, "Here she is Dorea, Hermione Granger."


	2. Chapter 2

So glad that quite a few people are enjoying this story already! I was going to wait a week to update, but the follows got me excited to go ahead and post this. Thank you to Damonsprincesss for the review. Hope everyone likes this chapter as much as the first one!

Chapter 2

Hermione felt slightly disoriented, but she steadied herself and faced Mr. and Mrs. Potter. They gave her genuine smiles. Dorea motioned for her to take a seat on the expensive and uncomfortable looking couch. Hermione obliged. Dumblodore sat next to her, and Charlus and Dorea sat in the opposing chairs. Once they had all taken seats, footsteps came for the staircase behind the two Potters. A scrawny looking, messy-haired young man walked into the sitting room.

He greeted everyone nonchalantly, "Hello, just on my way to the kitchen for my first breakfast. Nice to meet you Granger."

Dorea scolded, "James, have some manners," but James had already disappeared into a doorway that must have lead to the kitchen.

Slightly confused, Hermione asked, "First breakfast?"

Charlus answered, "Ahh, yes. James and Sirius have gotten in the habit of eating like they will be running marathons every day of their lives. They start eating breakfast the moment they wake up and don't stop until lunch time. Given their slim figures, I'm sure they believe that all that food has no effect on them, but if they're not careful…" he trailed off as he patted his large pudgy belly. Hermione gave him a small smile.

Dorea said, "Hermione, Albus tells us that you are from the witches' school in America. You have a lovely British accent though, why is that?"

Even though Hermione hadn't been informed of her pretend back-story, she didn't miss a beat, "Well I was raised here until I was ten. My parents took me to America then, but my accent stayed with me. Unfortunately, my parents passed away last month. I always longed to attend Hogwarts, so I got into contact with Professor Dumbledore. I am so thankful for this opportunity."  
"Well, Charlus and I are sorry to hear about your parents, but we are thrilled to have you here this summer and excited for you to get to enjoy the place that our boys love so much. They get restless when they are home, you know. I think they would prefer to just stay at Hogwarts year around. It frightens me for them that they might not be able to accept that this is their last year."

"Yes, as wonderful as Hogwarts sounds, it must be a hard place to let go of," Hermione said.

Then, another interruption to their conversation came in the form of Sirius Black strutting down the stairs in nothing but his dark boxers. Hermione's cheeks were aflame. Dorea turned her head to see her adopted son, and her eyeballs bulged. Dorea's eyebrows scrunched in anger, and Hermione could feel the lecture she was about to give. "Sirius Black! Could you possibly be more rude?! There is a young lady here, _and_ one of your professors. Get your arse back up the stairs and put on some suitable attire. I am to wits end with you and James this summer!"

Sirius made a face of pure innocence and said, "I had no idea we were having guests today mum. I'm quite sorry and embarrassed, truly. Will you forgive me professor?"

Dumbledore simply nodded.

"And you miss?"

"Hermione Granger, and yes I forgive you."

Sirius made his way back upstairs, and the adults went on to discuss some headline from the profit, but when Sirius got to the top of the landing where only Hermione could still see him, he turned back toward her and gave a smirk and a wink. Then, he disappeared. Hermione's cheeks turned even redder for it seemed that Sirius Black had made that little scene on purpose.

Finally, Dorea showed them into the dining room, but Dumbledore claimed that he couldn't stay for lunch (more transfiguration research). Hermione took a seat next to James. "It's nice to meet you, James." He gave her a small smile, and said, "Just warning you now, my heart is already taken by another. Don't get too attached."

Hermione chuckled, "You don't have to worry about that. But tell me about this other that has stolen your heart. Does she go to Hogwarts too?"

"Yeah, she's a Gryffindor just like me and Sirius. She's smarter than anyone else, even smarter than Remus. She is so smart that she won't give me the time of day. But she is so beautiful with her long red hair and bright green eyes. I just know by the end of the year I will have her agreeing to marry me."

"Blimey! You're not drooling over Evens again, are you?" Sirius Black had snuck in, this time fully dressed. He plopped down on the other side of Hermione.

"Oh, shove it Sirius. You're just jealous that you're heart can't even fathom the amount of love I have for Lily."

Sirius made a gagging noise. Once he and James had gotten through their round of bickering, he looked Hermione dead in the eyes and said, "Hello gorgeous" with the same mischievous smirk he had given her from the top of the staircase.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I won't be your plaything, Black. I've already been warned of your reputation. I prefer to leave my heart and my image undamaged, thanks."

"Are you saying I'm capable of breaking your heart?" Sirius asked, knowing he had already won the first round of an endless game.

"Of course not," she replied curtly. She focused really hard on her food for the rest of lunch, ignoring Sirius Black as much as possible. After lunch, Dorea showed Hermione to her attic room. It spanned the entirety of the house. There was a beautiful view of the Potters' small lake and a blue, cushioned window seat perfect for reading. Smaller windows were on all the other walls, making it feel the complete opposite of a stuffy attic room. The bed was large and plush. The floor was hard wood, but a giant, blue area rug covered much of the surface. Her wardrobe lined an entire wall. Lastly, a fireplace sat just right of the staircase. The entrance to Hermione's room started with a door on the landing that housed James and Sirius. Through the door, one would follow a much narrower staircase with no door at the top; it opened up straight into the attic.

Hermione smiled with delight. She had never experienced something as luxurious as this. "I'm glad you like it, dear. I'll leave you alone now. I'm sure you need a break from the chaos you've experienced lately. If you need anything, come find me."

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Potter," Hermione emphasized with the utmost sincerity. She knew that Harry's grandparents would not be anything but nice to her. Harry has kind and generous genes. "Not a problem, sweetie." Dorea disappeared down the staircase, and Hermione heard her close the door at the bottom. She made her way over to the wardrobe and found some clothes that would be comfortable to wear around the house. She walked over to a door near her bed and found that her suspicions had been right: she had her own private bathroom in the attic. She left the door open so that the air would stay cool, set her fresh clothes on the sink counter, and started the tap. As she stripped away the clothes she had been wearing since Dumbledore's funeral, she sang her favorite muggle song at the moment: "Foolish Games" by Jewel.

Meanwhile, Sirius Black opened the door that lead up to the attic room, planning to ask Hermione if she wanted to join him for a game of wizard's chess. He had one foot on the stairs when he heard the shower running and a beautiful voice belting out a song he had never heard before. Not wanting to embarrass Hermione, but not wanting to leave, he sat at the foot of the stairs and enjoyed the music while he waited out her shower.

Sirius Black had slept with quite a few women in the past couple of years. Most of the girls were nice and pretty, but none of them wonderful enough to leave a lasting mark. It wasn't that he didn't try to have relationships; he just couldn't quite feel anything close to what James felt for Lily. He attempted to daydream about his sleeping partners, tried to show them affection and adoration, but none of it felt genuine. He simply couldn't give them the care and love that they expected. So, he left them all high and dry. He knew it was harsh, but he didn't know what else to do. As much as he enjoyed teasing this mysterious, new Granger girl all morning, he was scared to be more than friends with her because he knew he might fail her in a relationship.

He declared, just as the shower was turned off, that he would stop his flirting ways and just get to know Hermione like a normal person for the rest of the time that they would spend together at the Potters' estate. Once he could tell that she had put clothes on, he knocked on the door next to him and said, "Hermione, can I come up?"

"I suppose, Sirius."

When he stepped off the top stair, he found her standing at a vanity, brushing through thick, curly wet locks of hair. He had to admit to himself that she _was_ beautiful. And he thought it interesting that she had said his name like she already knew him so well. He meant to keep it a secret that he had been listening to her, but before he could stop himself he asked, "What song was it that you were singing? I've never heard it before."

Hermione glared at him. "Were you spying on me in the shower, Sirius Black?!"

"No, of course not! I just walked by your door a couple of minutes ago before I knocked, and I heard you singing. You have a wonderful voice by the way."

She still looked skeptical, but answered his original question. "It's called 'Foolish Games'," and forgetting herself for a moment said, "I can't believe you haven't heard it. It's so popular right now…" Sirius scrunched his eyebrows, really trying to place the song in his memory, but it just wasn't there. Realizing what she had said, Hermione tried to save herself. "Well, it's popular in America anyways. That must be why you haven't heard it."

"I listen to a lot of American music."

Hermione was growing frustrated with herself for already having such a silly slip up. "I don't know why you haven't heard it Sirius! It's a good song though."

"I'll have to pay more attention when I'm listening to the radio, I suppose."

"Yeah… So why'd you come up here anyway?"

"I wanted to see if you would join me in a game of wizard's chess."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "What is it with men and that blasted game?!"

"I take it you don't like it," Sirius said with a smirk.

"Not really, no. But we could do something else together if you'd like."

Sirius raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"I meant go for a walk or something," Hermione declared, her cheeks turning red for the billionth time that day.

So, it became habit everyday that week that Sirius and Hermione would not see each other much except during meal times and their late afternoon walks together. They didn't talk much during the walks, usually only speaking about the weather or the Potters, but never about themselves. When they would reach the small lake each day, they sat a reasonable distance apart and took turns chunking rocks into the water. Hermione thoroughly enjoyed the peace. She felt at one with nature during these walks, and Sirius was just an extra to her enjoyment. He allowed her to think and absorb without expecting too much of her. He was perfectly patient.

Hermione spent time with James too, but this time was spent in James' room going through his wardrobe, giving him proper etiquette lessons, and making him practice speaking to her as if she were Lily. Hermione promised to keep these lessons a secret from Sirius, for James swore that his best friend would never understand why he needed to be with Lily so badly.

Exactly one week after Hermione had arrived at the Potters, Dorea came up the first set of stairs and hollered to the three teens in their separate bedrooms, "You have company! Don't keep him waiting!" She heard James and Sirius rushing out of their rooms to greet whom she was sure would be Remus Lupin. She hesitated for slightest of moments and then exited her attic room.


	3. Chapter 3

Fun question: What is your favorite ending to a Sirius/ Hermione time travel fanfic? The one's where Hermione erases everyone's memory so that it doesn't influence the timeline are _the worst_! (Answers won't affect the outcome of this story. I already have the ending planned out. I'm just a curious person.) Enjoy!

Chapter 3

As Hermione made her way down the stairs, she heard fist bumps, slaps on the back, and joyous laughter brought on by the reunion of three brothers. She smiled to herself, getting secondhand exciting from the young men. How nice it must be to have no worries for a while, to enjoy endless days with the closest of friends. It saddened her that her relationships with Harry, Ron, and Ginny could never be this way. Their moments of contentment were few and far between, the inevitable trials of the future looming over their heads. At least in this moment between Sirius, James, and Remus, they believed that their happiness would be long lived.

Before she came into view of the sitting room, James mentioned her to Remus, "Moony, you have to meet our new firend, Hermione. She's from America, and she's going to be staying with us until school starts next month."

Remus seemed interested. "Will she be going to Hogwarts with us as well?"

"Yeah, she is. And Dumbledore is just going to let her come to Gryffindor without a sorting. I think it will be great to have another member of our group, now that Peter has basically deserted us," James answered.

Hermione hadn't realized that the boys' relationship with Peter Pettigrew had already ended. That meant that Peter was already plotting with wannabe death eaters and the slimy likes of Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy. She wondered if the boys had any suspicion of what Peter was really up to.

Just before Hermione came into view, Sirius put on an air of nonchalance, "I don't think she's all that interesting. Bit of a bore. She just reads all day, really. Remus, you two might get along splendidly."

"Glad you think so highly of me, Black. I would expect nothing less from you, really," Hermione interjected as she entered the sitting room. "It's nice to meet you, Remus. I've heard many things about you from these two. You're much more important to them than they would have you believe." Hermione and Remus both turned to James and Sirius with smirks. Both boys' cheeks turned pink.

"It's nice to meet you as well, Hermione." To them all, he said, "I don't know about you all, but I haven't been on a broom in ages. How about a game of quiditch? Two on two?"

Hermione grew pale. James' and Sirius' eyes lit up. "How about me and Hermione versus you and James?" Sirius decided. Hermione felt it a good time to speak up. "I hate to crush everyone's hopes and dreams, but I don't play quiditch, and I certainly don't fly. I'm afraid of heights."

All three of the young men looked at her incredulously. "You've got to be kidding me, Granger," Sirius remarked with a teasing smile.

"Not in the slightest, Black."

"Well, we'll teach you how to play then. You'll catch on quickly with that mind of yours," James said, trying to easily solve the problem.

"Did you miss the part about me being afraid of heights? That doesn't just go away. Look, it's fine. I'll just get my book and read in the grass while you guys play."

All Sirius and James looked less than happy with the solution, for they loathed their odd number and had blindly hoped that Hermione would be quick to fill Peter's place. Remus didn't seem to care that Hermione wouldn't be joining them. As they went up stairs to get their quiditch gear, Hermione went up to her attic room to select a book. All the titles she wished to read had been published after 1977, so she would have to keep those hidden. Finally, she found a somewhat dull looking novel about man living in the woods for a year. She let out a sigh but took the book with her outside.

Remus was going to stay at the Potters' for two weeks, then go home for the last week of August, and meet them again on the Hogwarts Express. Even though Hermione didn't easily fit in with all their extravagant pranks and games, she enjoyed getting to see them at their happiest. She did miss her afternoon walks with Sirius, for he seemed to have forgotten all about them upon Remus' arrival. Instead she often went on walks alone and only joined the boys in their endeavors when they specifically asked her, not wanting to intrude.

One evening, she made her way through the house and up to her attic room after a solo walk. When she passed by Sirius room, she heard the three of them having a serious discussion. Because she was in this time to gather information, she stopped and listened. After some concentration and strain, the muffled tones became understandable.

"I don't care how nice and trustworthy she seems Sirius! She can't ever be a close part of our group," Remus was saying in a frustrated tone.

"We can't just bloody well start ignoring the girl that's been living in our house!"

"He doesn't mean that we can't be her friend. I see Moony's reasoning with this one, Pads," James tried to reason. Upon Remus' arrival, he had quickly changed his mind about wanting Hemione to be a legit member of their group. "Look what happened with Wormtail. We trusted him from the beginning because he was always with us, and now we are constantly under the threat that he might tell someone about Moony's furry little problem. What if Hermione gets mad at us, and because she hasn't known us as long, she tells everyone and ruins all of our lives. We can't risk that," James finished solemnly.

"Well I wasn't saying that we have to tell her about our secret," Sirius whined.

Remus spoke up once again. "That may not be what you are saying now. But you obviously act different about this girl than you ever have with anyone else. You'll get close to her in no time, and you'll feel bad to have to hide something from her. Then, you'll want to tell. And you absolutely cannot, under any circumstances do that, Padfoot."

"All right, all right Moony. Don't get your knickers in a bunch. I won't even speak to the girl if that'll make you feel better." To Hermione, all three boys sounded quite annoyed with each other, none of them seeing eye-to-eye on the best solution for such a problem. "I'm done talking about this, mates. I'll see you for Diagon Alley in the morning."

Realizing that they might soon find her in the hallway, Hermione dashed for the door at the bottom of her stairs. She closed it as quietly as possible and waited for any more comments or remarks. Remus and James were both perfectly mute as they went off to their own rooms. Hermione couldn't sleep at all that night. She wished so badly that she could tell Remus she already knew his secret but it was safe with her. She wished that she could tell Sirius he didn't have to worry about keeping things from her because she already knew it all. Mostly, her mind wouldn't stop focusing on this supposed way that Sirius acts toward her and which he has never acted toward anyone else. The only things strange Hermione noticed about his attitude was that he was unbearably flirtatious on the day they met, but had hardly flirted with her since that day. He rarely acted as if she existed most of the time, and she wondered if he meant it when he said he would no longer speak to her. The thought of that made Hermione want to cry.

The next day the four of them went to Diagon Alley together to get all of their school supplies. To Hermione's great dismay, Sirius Black did indeed refrain from speaking to her the entire day. Anytime the group split up, she always got stuck with Remus or James, Sirius ensuring that he wouldn't have to be alone with her. She could tell that Remus and James were also frustrated with Sirius, knowing that his blatant silent treatment would only cause a load of questions from Hermione. When they were in Madame Malkin's, Hermione spotted James speaking with Lily in the corner of the shop. She hoped very much that the conversation was going in James' favor. Finally, the pair walked toward Hermione, and Lilly Stuck out her hand. "I'm Lily Evens."

"Hermione Granger, it's nice to meet you."

"It was so nice of your mother, James, to let her stay with you guys for the rest of the summer. Although, I wouldn't expect anything less of Dorea. She is always so kind."

Hermione smiled and nodded her head in agreement. Wanting to give James a little push, she said, "So you didn't mention how you know James so well. Are you two dating?"

James' and Lily's faces both turned scarlet. Lily said with a sheepish smile, "Well if you would have asked me that ten minutes ago I would have said no. But now the answer would be a yes."

"Wow! That's fantastic you guys." Hermione gave James two thumbs up when Lily wasn't looking.

That night, Hermione once again found the three marauders arguing behind closed doors. This time they were in James' room, and Hermione had been on her way downstairs to the small library that the Potters had. At the mention of her name by one Sirius Black, she stopped in her tracks and crept over to James' closed bedroom door.

"I'd like to know why you aren't giving James the same threat, Remus, now that him and Lily are all cuddled up."

"We aren't all cuddled up, you idiot."

"You're dating now, and that's much more than what me and Hermione are. Why is no one worried about Lily getting too close, about her asking questions, about her finding out and telling everyone?"

Remus interjected before James could come back with something really ugly. "Sirius, we've known Lily for six years now. Hermione is completely new to all of us. Even though she seems genuine, she could be pulling a complete façade."

James jumped in again, "And you've got to quit flat out ignoring her. She's going to end up confronting you, and you're not going to have the slightest idea of what to say."

Sirius was quiet for a very long time, and then he said, "I'll respect your wishes, Remus. I don't want to put you under greater stress. However, you have to realize that I can't live my life alone on account of keeping your secret. For now though, I won't pursue her until we really get to know her."

Remus seemed satisfied. "Thanks Pads."

James let a giant sigh. "Thank Merlin! I'm so sick of all this tension. Can we go back to being careless troublemakers?" They all chuckled.

Hermione took that as her cue to leave. Instead of going to the library as she had planned, she went to the kitchen for a late snack. To her annoyance, Sirius Black came in shortly after. Tired of men in general, she decided to give him just what he deserved: a confrontation.

"I hope you have a good reason for acting so rudely to me all day, Black"

He looked at her with surprise and then indignation. "I don't have to explain my reasoning for my actions to someone I hardly know, _Granger_."

"If you're going to stop being friends with someone, it's only fair to give them warning first," she shot back.

"What makes you think we aren't friends anymore?" he asked, surprised yet again.

"Friends don't act the way you've been acting. You can't just ignore me one day and then act as if everything is fine the next. And you seem to have completely forgotten about our afternoon walks. I go alone now."

"Hermione, it's just hard for me to be friends with you without having all these problems."

"What problems?"

"That's just it. They don't concern you, and you can't ever ask."

"What if I told you that I know you have your secrets, just as I have mine, and I understand completely, and I won't _ever_ ask about them? Then can we stop acting like children? All I'm asking for is a friendly acquaintance that isn't obsessed with Lily and isn't Remus with his constant suspicion and dry humor."

Sirius cracked a smile. "Fine, Locks. I think I can manage that as long as you keep your promise."

Hermione scrunched her brows in confusion. "What did you just call me?"

Sirius' smile grew even larger. "I called you Locks. I respect people with beautiful hair. Yours is almost as stunning as mine." He stroked his black, wavy locks with an arrogant look on his face.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You really are something else, Sirius Black."


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry this update took more time than the last two have. I hope you enjoy it, and thanks for all the follows, favorites, and reviews!

Chapter 4

Hermione sat in an empty compartment on the Hogwarts Express, which was well on its way to her favorite place in the world. Even though she had only been away from the bewitching school for a month, she longed for something familiar. As comfortable as Dorea and Charlus tried to make her at their estate, she still needed something constant in a world so foreign to her. Unlike her feelings toward Sirius or his feelings toward her, Hogwarts was something of which she could be sure.

She and Sirius had worked well over the last couple of weeks to establish a solid friendship. She enjoyed her time with him, but she felt a constant tension when she looked into his eyes. They often filled with passion and care, but she also saw his fight to restrain such feelings. As much as she wanted to convince Sirius to give in, she knew it was for the best that they remain only friends. If he ever openly pursued her, Hermione would have to come up with a sensible excuse as to why they couldn't be together on a long-term basis. Such a relationship would result in far too many questions, not to mention the damage it would certainly do to the timeline.

A knock came on the compartment door. Hermione looked up from her book to see the new head girl and James' new girlfriend, Lily Evans. They greeted each other with smiles.

"Lily, have you seen any of the boys since we got on the train? They said they would find me before we got to Hogwarts, but I'm starting to think they stood me up."

"No! I'm sure they wouldn't do that Hermione. I know for a fact James is busy doing his rounds. I'm sorry to say I can't account for the other two."

"I hope they're not up to anything mischievous," Hermione said with a disappointed sigh.

Lilly agreed but had to leave Hermione alone yet again to continue her rounds. Hermione watched the scenery fly by out the window, wondering for the millionth time if she had made the right choice in coming to 1977. Even though she wasn't sure, she also couldn't bring herself to go back to 1997 just yet. The thought of going back to that day after Dumbledore's funeral and discussing a dreadful horcrux hunt made her want to curl up in a ball and cry for days. As crazy as it seemed, there were so many less things to worry about in this time period.

After Hermione had finished a couple more chapters in her book, _Song of Solomon_ , Remus entered the quiet compartment. "Hermione, I wanted to have a word with you." He seemed unusually serious.

"What is it, Remus?"

"I just wanted to make sure you don't think I hate you. I know I've been a bit distant since we've met. I just have some issues I need to sort through that only James and Sirius know about."

"I understand. I won't pry."

Even though the matter was resolved in Hermione's eyes, Remus continued, "I just didn't want you to think I'm an awful person, and if you only knew how messed up I am, you wouldn't come anywhere near me."

"Remus, I'm sure that's not true."

"I just think you're fantastic Hermione, and I am really excited about getting to spend the school year with you."

"Well that's very kind of you to say," Hermione remarked with a questioning look on her face. She had no idea where this conversation was going.

"Hermione, I want to pursue you so badly, but I know that Padfoot is much more suitable for you than I am."

Dying to change the subject, Hermione questioned, "Who is Padfoot, Remus?" The boys had been careful not to use their Marauders nicknames in front of her all month. She could tell that he was mentally cursing himself.

"Well, uhhhh, it's just a nickname we've given to Sirius. So, uhhh, yeah I meant Sirius would be more suitable for you… romantically that is." He scratched the back of his neck and avoided her eyes.

Hermione thought she might die from the awkwardness of the conversation. She had no idea that Remus Lupin (her future professor!) was the least bit interested in her. "Remus, I'm not looking to be romantically involved with anyone. I have issues of my own to deal with, and they don't really allow me a boyfriend. I hope you and Sirius can understand that," she finished with a questioning look.

"Yeah, of course, Hermione." He left the compartment in a hurry, obviously embarrassed about what he had said to her.

Hermione remained alone for most of the remainder of the journey. She finished her book and then stared out the window, daydreams filling her head. Mischievous grey eyes taunted her mind and she couldn't stop seeing them stare at her from across the dinner table or next to her by the small lake. They were a haunting comfort, and Hermione couldn't help herself but to fall into their trance. She hadn't even realized she was falling asleep, but the real version of those grey eyes woke her twenty minutes before the train would arrive at Hogsmeade.

Sirius Black said, "Hermione, I have to talk to you about something."

Still half asleep, Hermione said, "Oh no, not you too."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, never mind. What do you need to discuss?"

"I'm sure you've noticed us mention a man named Peter Pettigrew? We had a sort of falling out with him at the end of last school year. We haven't gotten a word from him since, until today. Now he says he wants to be friends again. He says that he's missed us. But something seems different about him, Hermione… like he might be up to something. I don't know if he can still be trusted. I need your help and your advice. You're good at observing and reading people. Could you keep an eye on him this week, and tell me if you suspect anything suspicious?"

Hermione wanted to immediately tell him to never trust Peter Pettigrew, but instead she said, "Not a problem Sirius. I would love to help you… as a friendly favor of course."

He gave her a taunting smile. "So what did you think I wanted to talk to you about, Hermione?"

"Oh, nothing. I was simply confused from my sleepiness."

"You didn't think I wanted to talk to you about the same thing Remus did?" He asked with a winning grin.

"He told you about it."

"Yeah, don't worry, he's not going to be all weird or anything… and you don't have to worry about me either Hermione. I know such a relationship wouldn't be good for either of us."

Hermione felt relief wash over her. He understood! "Thank you, Sirius."

The Hogwarts feast was just as incredible as Hermione remembered it. She smiled as each young Gryffindor was welcomed to their house table during the sorting. She became very interested in the dinner table when Dumbledore made an announcement about her arrival during his welcoming speech. The food appeared, and Hermione watched horrified as three young men became face-stuffing pigs. Ronald's eating habits paled in comparison to the Marauders at Hogwarts. She now realized that their only mildly animalistic eating habits at James' house had merely been a show for Dorea's sake.

"Boys! Could you slow it down, please? I'm starting to lose my appetite from the sight of you."

"Sorry Locks."

"Hermione, you'll have to meet our friend Peter," James said.

Hermione looked over at James curiously. "I thought you said that Peter deserted you."

James seemed a bit uneasy about the subject, but he looked over at Lily and she gave him a confident smile. "Peter deserves a second chance. He didn't do anything unforgiveable."

Remus seemed angry at such a statement, and Sirius was definitely conflicted. A few moments later, a mousy looking boy sat down and Hermione's appetite officially went away. Remus' anger was visible as he stood up from the table. "I'm not feeling well. I think I'll head off to bed."

Sirius got up to go with Remus, and Hermione felt obligated to follow them. She gave James and Lily apologetic looks, both of whom looked thoroughly confused. She ran to catch up with the werewolf and his furry friend.

"Guys, Lily is at the root of this problem."

Remus nodded his head. "That's exactly what I was thinking Hermione. She's trying to tell James what to do in a situation that she knows nothing about."

Sirius chimed in, "Yeah, she probably thinks we simply had a little spat with Peter over something stupid. She doesn't understand the seriousness of the situation."

"I certainly think Lily means well, but her overbearing kindness is definitely making this a tough situation for you guys, or so it seems."

Both boys looked at Hermione, realizing for the first time that she, just like Lily, was a third party observer to the situation and shouldn't be allowed in on the details of their argument with Peter Pettigrew.

Hermione immediately gave her defense. "I know what you two are thinking. I'm not trying to pry. I simply want to help, and I will offer said help without asking any questions."

Remus accepted her reasoning. "Okay, what do you suppose we do?"

"First, you two need to have a long and thorough talk with James Potter tonight. Don't insult Lily, but explain to him that she can't possible have any real insight on the situation. Meanwhile, I will attempt to talk to Lily about it as well, reminding her that a pushy and intrusive girlfriend can often become an annoyance. Then, this week we will give Peter a sort of test run and will all be on the look out for suspicious behavior from him. In a week we should know for sure what to do about it."

"You're a bloody genius, Hermione," Sirius praised.

"It really wasn't that elaborate of a plan, Sirius. Put your tongue back in your mouth, you nitwit," Remus remarked.

Hermione laughed at the two of them.

That night she made a silent wish that Sirius and Remus knew how to handle themselves with James. Once Lily entered the seventh year girls' dormitory, she asked her for a word.

"Hermione, I only want James to do what is right, that's all."

"But do you know anything about Peter, Lily? How do you know that James being friends with him is a positive thing?"

"I don't know. It just seems cruel to leave Peter high and dry."

"Lily, you don't really know the circumstance of Peter's parting from the boys' group. Whatever he did might be entirely unforgiveable. Are you sure that you're not sort of reflecting your own friendship troubles onto James' situation?"

Lily looked stunned. "What do you know about my friendship troubles, Hermione?"

Hermione quickly thought of an explanation. "I heard a few people talking about you ending your friendship with a man named Severus. I don't mean to pry, but it seems that you are being influenced by the pain that your own situation has caused you. You want to be able to forgive Severus, but you know that you can't, and as a result you are pushing James to forgive Peter."

Lily's eyes began to leak. "You're right, it's horrible of me. I just miss my old friend, and if what Peter has done is anything less than what Severus did, then he deserves to be forgiven."

"Lily, I think it might come to light that Severus and Peter's offenses were quite similar."

"I hope your wrong, Hermione, but I promise not to force James' hand anymore in case what you say is true."

"Thank you, Lily."

As Hermione drifted off to sleep, she thought about the lives that she might have just saved through such a small act. In her last lingering bit of consciousness, she decided that a discussion with Dumbledore was necessary. Hermione wanted desperately to change the future, and it finally seemed like the right thing to do.


	5. Chapter 5

This was my favorite chapter to write so far. Enjoy!

Chapter 5

The first week of classes went really well for Hermione. However, she had been so busy trying to keep an eye on Peter at all times that she hadn't gone to see Dumbledore yet about her plans for the future. Meanwhile, James and Lily were as smitten as ever once Lily stopped forcing James into decisions. They were often spotted next to the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, sucking face without any regard for their fellow Gryffindors. Because of James' new preoccupation, Hermione found herself spending all her time with Sirius and Remus. The three had all the same classes, and Sirius made sure that they always sat right next to each other. Hermione enjoyed their help with the schoolwork; it was nice to work with two men that strived to do well in all classes. Sirius very much surprised her in this regard. She expected him to be a sort of Fred and George type, more concerned with pranks than with schoolwork. He was an above average student, really. He didn't quite have the brain of Hermione or Remus, but he worked just as hard as the two.

On rare occasions, Hermione sometimes found herself alone with the young Sirius Black. When Remus was under the weather or just wanted some alone time, Sirius often asked Hermione to play chess with him or to go on walks. She always agreed, but the thought of spending more time alone with him brought butterflies to her stomach. When Hermione had moments to reflect on her situation, she couldn't stop her mind from drifting always to the face of Black. More and more, the face became a comfort for her, and most recently it became a spark for her excitement. She thought about his long black hair and how attractive he looked when he pulled it all back into a hair tie. She thought about the way he always pushed up his uniform sleeves to his elbows, as if he knew that he always looked cooler that way. Hermione thought about herself in comparison. Was there anything stunning about her image? At one point she might have said no, but she had grown to embrace her plain colors and curly hair. She felt unique in a conventional way and knew that she was enough for many men to appreciate.

On one cool, sunny afternoon, a couple of weeks into school, Remus was being grouchy which lead Sirius to asking Hermione for a walk outside. As they walked alongside each other, they kept stealing glances at one another. Hermione would catch Sirius watching her and so she would look at him with eyebrows raised, but when he would look away embarrassed, she couldn't help but to watch him as well.

"How are you enjoying Hogwarts so far, Hermione?" he asked once their silence had gone on for too long.

"It's wonderful! Everything I expected and more. I'm so fortunate that I get to experience it."

"Too bad it came with such a heavy price…" he said to her with the utmost care in his voice.

Hermione bowed her head, not thinking about her imaginary dead parents, but thinking about her real ones back in the future and what they might be exposed to in the war against Voldermort. She became even more determined to speak to Dumbledore about changing the future. "It's all right Sirius, really. I've made my peace. I will always miss them, but I cannot dwell."

"Your positive attitude is very inspiring, Locks."

She grinned and pushed him lightly on the shoulder. "I don't know why you think I've approved of that nickname."

"I don't know why you think I need your approval."

"Call me Locks one more time and see how many spells I can hit you with in a matter of seconds."

They stared into each others' eyes with daring and ferocity and passion in the look. "… _Locks_."

Before the word had barely escaped his lips, Sirius Black was in a full-fledged sprint toward the Black Lake, and deep, boisterous laughter erupted from him the entire way. Hermione quickly followed, sending nearly harmless jinxes his way, but he dodged them all.

"You're such a child, Black, honestly," she yelled after him.

He was far enough away that he could slow down without her catching up. He turned to face her, still jogging backwards toward the lake. "Hermione, in your entire life, have you ever let yourself be a child? Everyone needs to be childish every once in a while." Sirius had finally reached the lake. Hermione stopped running, but walked up to meet him.

"Me coming here was the first childish decision I've ever made."

"Coming to the lake?"

"No, you moron, to Great Britain, to Hogwarts with you and James and Remus. I reasoned that I was coming here to find answers and solve a few of my issues, but it just feels like I'm being a coward by running away from a tough situation."

"Hermione, you are far from cowardly. And like I said, even if it was childish for you to come here, everyone needs to be a child at least once in your life. Let yourself have some fun before the real world comes crashing down on all of us."

"You're right Sirius, I do need to give in a little, but there are still some serious matters I need to take care of while I'm here. That reminds me, I need to find some time to speak with Dumbledore."

"What do you need to speak with him about?"

Hermione thought for a moment about a solid excuse then said, "Just some details about my parents' estate."

Sirius could tell that it wasn't the entire truth but only said, "If you need to talk about them to anyone, I'm here for you. I sort of know what it's like to be without a family."

"That means a lot Sirius. I'm glad I have someone who sort of understands."

On their walk back to the castle Hermione mentioned the inevitable meeting they all needed to have on the subject of Peter Pettigrew. They had waited an extra week than what was planned in order to be absolutely sure of their decision on the matter, but after two weeks of an awkward friendship with the strange boy, a discussion was in order. When Hermione mentioned this, Sirius' face immediately darkened. "I'll gather the other two when we get back inside. If Peter isn't in our dormitory, we can meet in there; otherwise we'll have to find another private place to talk."

Late that night, the three men and Hermione sat on the circle of beds in the seventh year boys' dormitory. Peter had been mysteriously missing all day. Remus suggested that they start by each giving their own separate account about what they have noticed about Peter in the past two weeks or any extra knowledge they had gained on the subject.

James started off, "I've really been trying to be observant this week you guys, but you see how much Lily has been all over me."

Sirius chimed in, "That's real classy James, blaming Lily for your incompetence."

"I'm not incompetent. I still noticed a few things. Peter has been asking me an awful lot of questions concerning what I know about the Order."

Remus didn't want to leave Hermione out of the loop, so he explained, "The Order of the Pheonix, he means. It's an organization that is working to fight Voldemort and his death eaters."

Hermione faked a look of sudden understanding and nodded her head.

To them all, Remus said, "We can't rule out the fact that Peter might simply want to join the Order after school is over. However, it doesn't seem likely given his cowardly history. Also, his disappearances still occur far too often. We have got to find out where he is going."

Sirius puffed out his chest and with the utmost arrogance said, "I happen to know where he keeps getting off too, Moony."

Remus gave Sirius a threatening look for his use of the nickname in front of Hermione.

Hermione ignored their silent exchange and said, "Well are you going to tell us, Sirius?"

"The Slytherin dungeons, and I saw him speaking with Lucius Malfoy a few times in empty corridors."

"Maybe they're in love," James said in all seriousness.

"… or, and this sounds far less likely than your reasoning Prongs, maybe Peter has made friends with the death eater likes of Snape, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle."

Remus looked mad again over Sirius constant use of the nicknames. Hermione tried to reassure him. "Remus, I know you guys have silly nicknames for each other. They don't bother me, so you don't have to get upset about accidentally using them in front of me."

He simply looked at her like she couldn't possibly understand what was really going on.

Hermione addressed all three young men with her most vague advice from the future. "I believe that Sirius is correct in this matter. I, too, have seen Pettigrew fraternizing with known suspicious characters. I think he only asked to rekindle his friendship with you three in order to get close to the Order. He's keeping his enemies closer, so to speak."

"What can we do, then?" James asked.

Remus provided an answer. "I believe we should simply tell him that our friendship will never be what it once was. We can tell him that we've all grown apart, that there is no point in pretending to be friends when we no longer have much in common. We just have to do it in a way that won't let him know that we are onto him."

The other three gave their agreement. They decided that it was best to get it over with quickly before Peter found any valuable information to feed to the death eaters. The next day, James, Sirius, and Remus would have a talk with Peter. Hermione knew that it was best for her not to be there. After all, she wasn't a true member of their group. Remus still feared her finding out his secret.

Hermione got up to go to her own dormitory, and Sirius offered to walk with her to the bottom of the stairs. Remus and James raised their eyebrows but said nothing. Hermione and Sirius were quiet until they got down to the common room, but Sirius wouldn't let Hermione go off to bed without at least a little conversation.

Hermione stood with her back against the wall next to the staircase, and Sirius stood facing her. "I'm glad you're a part of all this, Hermione," he said to her. "You make me see things more clearly. I need someone like you around now that I'm losing James and Peter."

"You're not losing James. He has his own life apart from your friendship, but it is obvious that he values you and Remus far above anyone else, and it will always be that way."

"I hope you're right. See, that's what I mean. I need someone like you around all the time. You open my eyes."

"Do you simply need someone _like_ me, or do you need me?" she asked with a smirk.

"You know the answer to that question, Locks." In that moment Hermione knew that if she let him do what he was planning on doing, everything would go to ruins. She watched as he leaned in and his eyelids slowly shut. It would have been so nice to let her own eyes close and feel the bliss of Sirius' lips against her lips, but in this situation she could not be childish.

"Sirius," she said and watched his eyes open as he took a step away from her, "I need to get to bed."

He looked devastated, and Hermione felt horrible, but she only wanted to protect both of their hearts because no matter what happened here in 1977, she still had to return to Harry and Ron at some point.

"Yeah, of course. Sweet dreams, Hermione." They went their separate ways. As Hermione walked up the stairs to her dormitory, a battle broke out between her head and her heart.


	6. Chapter 6

Happy International Women's Day to all my female readers! I hope you all were able to take the Pledge for Parity today. Enjoy the new chapter!

Chapter 6

"Miss Granger, this sounds like a horribly bad idea. What you are proposing does not just affect the immediate people around you; it could influence the entire world in the future."

"I know that, sir, but if the future is already a bad place, why not change it?"

"You must know that bad things happen to witches and wizards who meddle with time."

"I know that, sir, better than most. However, I think in such cases, the wizard meddles for personal gain and then ends up making the future a worse place for himself than how it started. In this situation I only hope to save the innocent. I want to do this for the greater good. I cannot let evil triumph, sir. I am in a position to save lives. I cannot sit back and allow people to be harmed or killed simply for fear of meddling."

Dumbledore still did not seem entirely convinced. Hermione felt her eyes start to water. She thought of the future, where James and Lily did not exist, where Sirius Black was never a free man before his death, where Remus Lupin was a lonely werewolf, and where Voldemort had risen up once again and a new generation was burdened with the task of fighting him. That was no longer the future she wanted to return to. "Please, professor, I am begging you to let me do this."

"If I allow this, Miss Granger, we must first discuss the possible outcomes and precautions you must take."

Hermione felt relief that he was even considering it. "We can go over it as many times as you like until you think we are ready."

"How do you plan on ensuring your own birth?"

"Well my parents are muggles so I don't suppose that what we change here in the wizarding world will influence them much."

"But if they do not end up having a girl named Hermione, do you suppose that you will still exist in this past world, or will you simply fade away? Because you must seriously consider that possibility before you continue on this path."

"I'm not sure what might happen, sir, but if I still exist when this is all over, I still plan to return to my time. Even if my family and friends no longer know me exactly as I am now, 1997 is where I belong. This time feels so practiced to me, like reading a book I already know the ending of. I want to help the people of this time, but I don't want to intrude on their lives."

"Have you considered how that will affect the ones you have already become close to here?"

"I have considered, and I do not believe that I am so close to anyone that my departure would be devastating to them. I think they might miss me for a while, but they will get over it."

Silence fell across the room for a number of moments before Dumbledore spoke again. "Now, Miss Granger, you must tell me everything about the future, you must tell me everything you plan to change, and then you must tell me how you plan to make those changes."

On that crisp day in early October, Hermione spent her entire afternoon and evening in Dumbledore's office going over the details of her plans. She told him about the future of every person she knew or knew about, she told him about Voldemort's second rise to power, and she told him about the horcruxes. She explained her desire to save James, Lily, Sirius, and Remus. She emphasized Peter Pettigrew and Severus Snape's untrustworthiness. Dumbledore listened intently, and offered solutions to many of the kinks in her plan. By the time Hermione left his office at dinner time, she felt incredibly pleased with herself and confident in the work she could do to save the world and the people that she knew.

When she arrived at the Great Hall, she found James, Sirius, and Remus already there. Sirius saw her walking toward them and a smile grew on his face. James and Remus turned to see what he was looking at.

"Hello boys."

"Hermione, where have you been all day? We looked for you everywhere," Remus asked with a hint of concern in his voice.

"I had some important business to take care of, that's all," she said as she sat down next to Sirius.

"More important than spending the day with me?" Sirius said as his knee touched hers underneath the table.

Hermione felt herself blush but didn't want to enable him in his flirting. She didn't move her knee away, but simply said, "Far more important, Black."

Remus and James chuckled. Once their laughter died down, James said, "We have a bit of a situation with Peter."

"What is it?" Hermione asked, for she was apparently the only one that did not yet know about the situation.

Sirius piped up, "He's out for revenge."

"What do you mean 'he's out for revenge'?"

Remus said, "He means that Peter has been sabotaging us for a couple of weeks now, but the pranks are becoming much more violent than pranks. We weren't sure it was him at first, but now we're sure."

"The little rat couldn't bear the thought of rejection, I guess," James joked.

Deciding to have a bit of fun with the three men, Hermione said, "He is very rat-like isn't he? Come to think of it, all four of you guys remind me of different animals."

Their eyebrows raised high. Sirius wanted to play along, however. "What animal do I remind you of, Locks."

"You're a dog, Sirius," she said. James and Remus gave out nervous laughs, but Sirius looked at her as if she was the most brilliant witch he had ever met.

"James, you're more like a stag." His eyes almost popped out of his head.

"…and Remus, you remind me of… a wolf." All three men spit their drinks everywhere.

"Ewww, honestly, what is wrong with you three?" Lily exclaimed as she walked up to the table.

Hermione smiled and said, "I have no idea what's wrong with them, Lily. They all are acting very strange."

Lily sat down next to James, but he didn't put his arm around her as was the usual habit. They barely looked at each other throughout the rest of dinner. Hermione was worried that something might be wrong between the two, and she decided to ask Lily about it that night before bed.

They each sat on their own bed in the dormitory, Lily brushing her hair, and Hermione practicing charms. "Lily," she finally said, "is everything all right between you and James? You two seemed a bit tense during dinner."

Lily was quiet for a moment and then said, "We're fine. We just haven't quite figured out a nice balance for our new relationship. We want to be together all the time, and _be together_ all the time, if you know what I mean, but we are starting to realize that so much time together is unhealthy. We are trying to give each other a bit of distance so that we don't drive each other insane. But don't worry; we are still very much invested in each other."

"That's good to hear. That sounds very wise and responsible of you to make such a decision for the long term benefit of your relationship."

"Thanks. I think it will be a very positive thing."

"I hope so."

The room was quiet again for a while. Lily started to lie down but then turned back to Hermione and asked, "So what's going on with you and Sirius?"

"What do you mean?"

"I just mean that you two have gotten quite close in the past two months. You spend more time with him than anyone, and the way he looks at you screams something far past platonic."

Hermione felt embarrassed and frustrated. She and Sirius could not have feelings for each other. He had said he understood that, but then he had almost kissed her and had been extremely flirty with her since. Hermione had no idea what to do about the situation. She cared for Sirius very deeply, more than she had ever expected, but she had a mission now. Her mission would most certainly end with her returning to the future, unless she became nonexistent. Either way, she would not be remaining here in the past, and the closer she got to Sirius Black, the more it would hurt him when she left.

"Earth to Hermione!" Lily said, drawing back the brunette's attention. "You zoned out there for a minute."

"Sorry. I've just got a lot to think about… and nothing is going on between me and Sirius."

For several hours after that conversation, Hermione tossed and turned in her bed. She could not sleep thanks to the ever present thought of Sirius Black. She tried meditating. She tried thinking about other things, but her thoughts always found their way back to the handsome, ridiculously goofy animagus that she considered her closest friend in this time. Finally, with a frustrated sigh, Hermione got out of bed and headed for the common room.

Once she got to the bottom of the stairs she couldn't believe her horrible luck. Sirius Black was sitting by the fireplace, reading a book. "You have got to be kidding me," she murmured.

Sirius looked up with surprise and then said, "You're just drawn to me like a magnet, aren't you Locks?"

"Of course not, Black. I simply wanted some peace. Unfortunately, you seem to be haunting me."

"Dormmates throwing a wild party or something?"

"No, they're all asleep. I just need some peaceful time away from my own mind. I'm driving myself crazy with over thinking."

"Hmmmm… I know what will help: a massage."

"You're joking," Hermione said with raised eyebrows.

"No, I'm serious," he said with a wink. "Come sit in front of me on the sofa. I'll massage your shoulders for you. It will help you relax so much better; I promise."

Hermione wasn't sure what to do. She certainly did not want this to lead to far more physical contact with Sirius, but she needed to chill out before her brain exploded. She gave in to the desires of her body and heart and sat down in front of Sirius. When his large palms rested on her shoulders, she got goosebumps. She closed her eyes and took deep breathes as Sirius' strong hands kneaded her muscles and skin. It felt amazing, and for once, Hermione didn't feel the need to think about anything.

"What's your favorite book, Hermione?" he asked softly.

"The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien," she said without thinking.

"I've never heard of that one." And of course he hadn't because it hadn't been published until 1990.

"Oh, it's a muggle book."

"I read muggle books," he said with a grin.

She smiled too. "Haven't we had this conversation before?"

They were both quiet again. His hands had done wonders to her neck, but now they made their way down her spine. Hermione felt an overwhelming sense of intimacy building up in the massage. In order to get her heartbeat back under control, she moved away from him, faced him, and said, "Thanks for that, Sirius. It really did help."

"I told you it would."

Then, and Hermione wasn't quite sure how it happened, they were kissing. Their lips touch, and it was the most passionate thing Hermione had ever felt in her entire life. She smiled into the kiss because as much as she had been trying to fight it, this was the moment she had been dying for. These were the lips she had been longing for. And _Merlin_ was he a good kisser. His right hand ran fingers through her curly hair as his strong lips played with her softly. It was as if they were dancing. The massage had eased some of her thoughts, but only in that moment with Sirius did she finally let go of her mind and just be.


	7. Chapter 7

Almost to 50 followers on this story! I'm so happy! Thanks to everyone that reads it. I hope you enjoy this new chapter!

Chapter 7

Hermione stared at the back of Sirius' head for the entire charms lesson. Charms was her favorite subject, but she couldn't concentrate. They hadn't said a word to each other since the kiss they shared the night before. When they got to their first class of the morning, Sirius sat next to James rather than next to Hermione. Remus took the opportunity to sit with Hermione, but she was so engrossed in her own mortification that she had barely said a word to Remus.

Once the kiss had finally ended last night they had both went up to bed without really saying anything. Hermione slept peacefully, but the moment she woke up doubt began to set in. Sirius only reinforced her doubt when he didn't greet her at breakfast. As she stared at his perfect black locks and watched him and James pass notes back and forth, she became sure that he must deeply regret what happened the night before.

"Hermione, is something wrong with you today?" Remus finally whispered, worry etched in his brow.

"No, I'm fine," Hermione said in an unconvincing tone.

"Right… I'm concerned. Charms is your favorite class, and you're not even paying attention to the lecture."

Finally Hermione broke down. "Oh, Remus, I'm so humiliated. I'll tell you what happened at lunch."

At lunch, Remus and Hermione found a spot at the very end of Gryffindor table, far away from James, Sirius, and Lily. Hermione's cheeks were red as she explained to Remus her inability to sleep last night and the coincidental meet up with Sirius in the common room. She became even more uncomfortable when she told him about the massage and finally the kiss. Remus' face displayed a number of emotions throughout her story: anger, sympathy, courage, and then acceptance.

"Did you want to kiss him?"

"Yes."

"And once you were kissing, did you enjoy it?"

"Yes."

"So you want to date Sirius?"

"That is a much more difficult question to answer. I guess I just expected him to be happy and all over me all day today, but instead he is giving me the cold shoulder."

"Hermione, I think you need to figure out what you would have wanted if Sirius had expected you two to be together after that kiss. Would that have made you uncomfortable?"

"Yeah…" Hermione thought about leaving Sirius in the past after a kiss like that. Leaving him after a relationship would be a million times more difficult. "I think my life is too complicated right now. I really, really like him, but it is just too much for me to handle."

"Then you should prepare yourself to tell him that because I think Sirius is only giving you the space he knows you would want. He is going to confront you sooner or later, I'm sure."

Hermione swallowed hard then studied Remus' face. She admired him more and more each day. "How are you feeling about all of this, Remus?"

He looked confused. "I already told you."

She touched his cheek with her fingers. "No, silly. You asked me what I was feeling, but I need to know that you don't resent me for kissing Sirius."

He put his hand over hers and smiled. "I absolutely do not resent you, Hermione Granger. However, you do have horrible taste in men." He winked at her.

That evening, James made plans for them to have a little party out by the lake. It would be after curfew, and therefore, Remus, Hermione, and Lily were reluctant to go. James promised that no one would get caught and swore that if they did he would take all the blame. Hermione was reluctant for another reason, though. Such a gathering would ensure awkwardness between her and Sirius. She wanted him to stop ignoring her, but she also did not want to break the news to him that they still couldn't be together. At 8 o'clock, Lily forced Hermione into a cute autumn dress and sweater and forced her to come to the small party.

When the two women finally reached the lake, James already sounded tipsy. He had a bottle of firewhiskey in hand, and Lily couldn't help but roll her eyes. Remus, too, had already been drinking, but he was sober enough to promise Hermione his support if Sirius spoke to her that night. To Hermione's surprise, Sirius hadn't drunk a single drop. He seemed to have no desire in getting plastered that night.

There was dancing, a bit of swimming, some making out between Lily and James (and the one kiss that Remus gave Sirius once Remus had reached the point of completely wasted). Hermione thoroughly enjoyed herself but only got a little bit tipsy. Once the night settled down, James and Lily lay down in the grass to star gaze, Remus was throwing up every thirty minutes or so, and Sirius grabbed Hermione's hand, asking her to follow him.

She was reluctant at first, but his hand was warm and his eyes were intense. She needed to know what he was going to say or do. He took her to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, and they sat down next to a very large tree trunk. He was quiet for a very long time before he asked, "Do you know what you want, Hermione?"

"I do, Sirius," she said sadly.

"I'm not going to like this very much, am I?"

"Sirius, I thought we agreed a month ago that a relationship would not be good for either of us. Why have you changed your mind so determinedly?"

"Because you're wonderful, Hermione. The way I feel about you is stronger than my logic, or your logic, or anyone's logic. I've never had a kiss like that before, and I am so happy it was with you."

Hermione started to tear up. "Sirius, you're making this very hard for me. There are a lot of things you don't know— leave each other's secrets alone, remember?— and I'm going to try to explain why it won't work between us without telling you too much."

Sirius looked devastated but also expectant of an explanation that might finally allow him to accept a platonic relationship with Hermione.

"I'm only going to be here temporarily, Sirius. I have a mission of sorts, which only Dumbledore knows the details of. Once I'm finished with that mission and I've gathered my thoughts and got myself together, I have no choice but to leave and never return. Why would you want to be with me when you know that it must end that way? Are you asking for us to break each other's hearts?"

He gave her a sad smile. "Of course not, Hermione. I guess I'm just ignorantly hoping that you will end up staying, no matter how much you say that you will have to leave."

"Do you understand, then?"

"I will understand, but I have to ask: is there anything in the world that might possibly make you stay?"

"No Sirius. That will never be an option." Hermione got up and walked back to the castle, trusting that they could all help each other get back. She needed to be alone because she needed to cry, and maybe scream. She never expected such pain when she went back in time. All this pain that she was causing herself, but there was no way out of it. Being happy with Sirius now would only cause even more pain down the road. But how could she bear this? She had never felt so strongly about someone before. An amazing man had been in her life more than two months now and she had to reject him. Hermione felt sick with herself. She made it to a women's restroom on the third floor before she completely broke down. She sat on the floor once inside and burst into hysterics. She felt like she couldn't even breathe.

After a few moments, she heard a knock at the door. "Hermione, please come out. You don't need to be alone when you're so upset." It was a drunken Remus. He must have followed her to the castle. She wiped her eyes and reluctantly exited the bathroom. He immediately pulled her in for a hug, and Hermione sobbed even harder. It made her feel even worse that the people of this time cared about her so deeply already.

Remus finally coerced her into walking to the Gryffindor tower. Hermione was thankful that drunk Remus didn't ask very many questions; he was merely happy to help her in her time of need. She felt terrified of having to face Sirius Black. She hoped that wouldn't happen until at least the next day, but Hermione didn't have very good luck. When the pair entered the common room through the portrait hole, Sirius, James, and Lily were sitting by the fireplace. James had fallen asleep with his head resting on Lily's shoulder, and Sirius and Lily were having a discussion in serious tones. They both stopped talking when they noticed the presence of Hermione and Remus. Sirius stood up very quickly and, to Hermione's great surprise, he rushed over to her and pulled her into a hug. He held onto her tightly and whispered, "I'm so glad you're okay. I was worried about you."

Hermione let out a sigh of relief. It seemed that Sirius could forgive her for trying to protect their hearts, and he wasn't going to resent her for preventing their relationship from going too far. She smiled into his hair, thinking how noble and kind and good a man Sirius truly was.

The rest of October flew by. Things were normal among the close-knit group of friends. Sirius was her friend, a very good friend, and he didn't ever do anything to make her uncomfortable. She and Remus now had a sort of bond; she felt that she could speak to him about almost anything (except the whole time-travel thing that is). James and Lily had finally reached the point in their relationship that was adorable and not adorably sickening. The three guys seemed to have officially accepted Lily and Hermione in as Mauraders, even though they still hadn't told either of the girls about the whole Mauraders business.

On Halloween, Dumbledore sent Hermione a note, asking her to come to his office immediately. Hermione got there in no time. "Did you find it, Sir? Have you destroyed it yet?" As she said this, she tried to get a peak of both his hands, making sure he hadn't been cursed.

"Yes indeed, Miss Granger. I found it, and I have destroyed it just as you instructed."

"And you swear you didn't put the ring on your finger at all?"

"No, you were very adamant that I didn't do that, remember?"

Hermione became embarrassed of the little panic attack she had been having, but it was all worth it if Dumbledore had destroyed the ring without getting himself cursed. He didn't have to die now! Hermione knew that such an action would cause drastic changes in the timeline, but she didn't care. Dumbledore was the most admirable man she had ever met; if she couldn't save him from death, then her entire plan would be useless. "I'm so happy you succeeded, Sir."

"Me too, Miss Granger. We'll rest for a couple of weeks, and then we will get started on the next phase."

"That sounds good, Sir."

"You better get to the Great Hall before your friends celebrate Halloween without you."

She entered the Great Hall with a large grin on her face. She hadn't felt that happy and peaceful in years. Her plan was working, and she was getting to have a celebratory Halloween feast with four people that she was growing to love. She sat down right between Remus and Sirius and across form James and Lily. They all gave her very warm welcomes. For only a moment she let her mind acknowledge that if she didn't have enough influence in this time, James and Lily would die in exactly four years. But things were already changing with the future. Hermione was confident that she could keep all of these wonderful people alive for a very long time.


	8. Chapter 8

Sorry this took so long. It's reached 50 followers, woohoo! Enjoy the new chapter.

Chapter 8

It was a painfully cold day as five young adults made the walk from Hogwarts to Hogsmeade. November had brought dreadful weather and dreary days. The students coped by spending endless hours in front of fireplaces. The five friends studied, played games, and enjoyed each others' company every evening by the hearth of the Gryffindor common room. Hermione almost didn't want to go to Hogsmeade on Saturday because of the weather, but the guys and Lily insisted that the warmth of the Three Broomsticks was worth enduring the miserable cold.

Hermione wore knee-high black leather boots with khaki skinnies tucked into them. She had on three shirts, a thick grey sweater, and a black pea coat and was still coat. Even her grey scarf and gloves didn't help. Remus pulled her in under his arm as they made the miserable walk. She smiled at him, once again appreciating the friendship she had found in him. She and Remus had had several long talks about the dynamic of their relationship. Remus no longer had any sort of interest in her. He saw her as his good friend, and he was rooting for Hermione and Sirius to be together even though he knew from Hermione how impossible it would be. Hermione had told Remus about as much of her situation as she had told Sirius. He knew her time here was limited and that she had some sort of mission to complete, but beyond that he had no clue.

"Where do you want to go first, Hermione?" Sirius asked from her other side.

"Why does Hermione get to decide?" James whined.

Lily gave James a disapproving look, and his whining immediately ceased.

Remus said, "Hermione gets to choose because she has never been to Hogsmeade before. It's up to us to let her go to every single store she wants to go to."

"Exactly!" Sirius chimed in.

Hermione felt guilty that it wasn't actually her first time at Hogsmeade, but she couldn't very well explain that to them without raising a ton of questions. "It's not that big of a deal, you guys, really. Let James pick a place."

"In that case, I give up my choosing rights to Lily," James declared before anyone could say anything. "Where would you like to go, my sweetheart?"

Everyone rolled their eyes at James, including Lily. Getting annoyed with the charade, Sirius said, "I'm taking Hermione to Tomes and Scrolls because I know she needs to buy at least twenty books in order to last her through the week."

Hermione giggled and smirked at Sirius. The group had finally reached the main road of Hogsmeade. Sirius grabbed Hermione's hand and said, "See you dweebs later!" The two ran through the freezing air together, and Hermione snorted at Sirius' lame insult. She adored him for his constant need to be the coolest and how that constant need often led him to being the dorkiest and cheesiest. They reached Tomes and Scrolls just as Hermione's nose was almost completely frozen. Sirius opened the door and held it for Hermione to enter first. She took note of the constant chivalry he had been showing her for weeks now.

Hermione felt comfort wash over her as she inhaled the papery scent of the bookstore. She immediately headed for the section on time travel without caring if Sirius followed her. The store didn't have much on the subject, but Hermione pulled out a few books that she thought might be helpful.

"Time travel, why are you reading about that?" Sirius asked from over her shoulder.

Hermione glanced at him suddenly. "Just an interest of mine. Who wouldn't want to time travel? Maybe someday it will be possible."

Sirius looked at her knowingly; there was something she was hiding. However, he wouldn't persist because they had their secrets that would not be shared. He gazed into her eyes with a content look on his face. Just spending time with Hermione made him the happiest man. Hermione held the gaze for a few moments and then dashed off to another section. Sirius scrunched his eyebrows, trying to piece together why Hermione was looking through probability books along with the time travel ones. He concluded that it must all have something to do with her mission. It was definitely best for the sake of the friendship that he leave it alone.

When they reached the cashier Hermione had fourteen books in hand. "Not going to read much this week, then?" Sirius joked with her.

"Hahaha, you're so funny, Black. One of these days you'll learn to appreciate how much I read, just like Ron and Harry finally did—" Hermione was horrified with herself for letting such a statement slip out.

Sirius seemed surprised that she had spoken about anyone in her past. "Who are Ron and Harry?"

"Ummm, they were just my friends in America."

"If they were just your friends, why do you seem so mad at yourself for accidentally telling me about them?"

"I just don't like to dwell on the past, Sirius. That's all," she stated with a final sort of tone in her voice. Sirius left it alone, as he had been doing with almost everything lately. He felt that the woman in front of him became more and more mysterious every day. I became harder and harder to stay silent and unquestioning.

They decided that the mostly way to find their friends was to head to the Three Broomsticks. They found Remus alone at a table. He informed them that James and Lily had headed for Honeydukes (and probably to make out). Remus didn't want to be a third wheel, so he decided to wait for Hermione and Sirius to make their way to the Three Broomsticks. Remus also seemed to be quite a bit more uplifted than usual. "What are you so happy about, Remus?" Hermione asked.

"Snape finally give you that kiss you've been longing for?" Sirius joked.

"Shove it, Pads." Remus fired back. "Actually, I have a date tomorrow night with very beautiful Ravenclaw sixth year."

"Awe Remus, that's great! I'm so happy for you."

"I'm happy for you too, mate. It's time you relax and have some fun. You can't let the whole werewolf thing hold you back forever."

Everyone at the table froze. Remus looked at Sirius with murderous eyes and then at Hermione with fear.

"Moony, I'm so so so sorry. It just slipped out! Hermione is such a part of the group now, I forget that there are still certain things she doesn't know about."

"Well she sure as hell knows now, you asshole."

"Boys, calm down. I already knew, and your furry little problem doesn't bother me one bit, Remus."

Their looks turned from angry and apologetic to surprise. Sirius turned on her. "How could you possibly know about Remus already?"

"I heard you two and James discussing it a few times, and there were other signs of course."

"You've been eavesdropping on us," Remus asked.

"No! I merely heard you by accident. I'm sorry that I did, but the important thing here is that I know about you, and I still care about you. What you are is not who you are, Remus."

The two men's shoulders relaxed. Sirius sighed and said, "You're a wonder, woman." Hermione rolled her eyes at that.

The rest of that day was uneventful. James and Lily finally came around. They all had a drink, went to quite a few more shops, and then returned to the castle. Remus informed James of Sirius' big mouth and their shock that Hermione had already known about Remus' condition somehow. The next day, Remus went on his date with the sixth year named Eleanor. It went well, and they officially became a couple. The rest of November, Remus spent half his time at the Ravenclaw table, and the other half of the time Eleanor sat with the Gryffindors. Peter rarely made an appearance at the Gryffindor table anymore. He was mostly seen sulking at the far corner of the Slytherin table. Hermione still got the creeps every time she spotted him.

On the first day of December, Hermione felt extremely melancholy. She missed Harry, Ron, and Ginny dearly. She missed her parents. As strange as it seemed, she even missed her "normal" life, one that involved rescuing Harry and Ron on a daily basis, breaking all the rules, and risking their lives. She enjoyed her time with the Marauders, but it still was not her home. She would have to return to the future eventually, even if it had changed.

Hermione took a lonesome walk through the castle to soothe her unhappy mind. She made her way up the several flights of stairs and finally ended up at the astronomy tower. She walked out into the cold, night air. The tower was dark, and she could see every star in the sky. Instead of looking up, however, she looked down at the place where Dumbledore had landed when he died that night. The night that would hopefully never happen now, but the moment was really for Hermione, and it still haunted her. As she held her arms against her body, she heard faint footsteps making their way up to the tower. To her surprise, it was Sirius approaching.

"How did you know I was up here?"

"Well now that I let slip out biggest secret, I might as well tell you another. We have a map of Hogwarts that tells us everyone's location at all times."

Hermione raised her eyebrows.

He went on, "I wanted to see you. I got the map and searched for you. I saw that you were walking to the tower."

"You know, Black, you're starting to sound a bit like a stalker," she jabbed.

"I suppose it does seem that way, but I was merely concerned about you."

"Why's that?"

"You haven't been yourself at all today, Hermione. I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine, Sirius. I just get to missing my old life sometimes."

"Yeah, I understand."

Hermione was standing at the edge of the tower, facing away from Sirius. He walked up beside her and began to look at the stars. "Did you know I was named after a star?"

Hermione did know, of course, but she decided to humor him. "No, I didn't. Which one?"

"It's the dog star. I am a bit like a dog, you know. Look," he pointed to a spot in the sky, "it's right there."

"It's beautiful, Sirius," Hermione said, taking in the enchanting moment she was having with Sirius Black.

He smirked at her. "I prefer handsome, but thanks anyway." And, suddenly, it was happening again. They were both leaning in, eyes closing, and just as their lips touched for a second, Sirius pulled back.

"I can't go through this again, Hermione. I won't kiss you if you're just going to regret it tomorrow."

She looked into his eyes, feeling bad for the past rejection, but feeling so much love and fondness in her heart for Sirius Black. "This isn't like last time, Sirius. I don't care if our time is limited. I need you."

Sirius hesitated for only a second more and then pulled her in. He held her waist and kissed her passionately. This time it would be different and it was different. There was no more uncertainty in their union. Hermione wanted it, and Sirius finally knew that she wanted it. He pushed her back gently against the tower wall and ran his fingers through her hair. Hermione held onto his neck for dear life. Her soul seemed to be floating away because such happiness and passion could not be real. They stayed entwined for over an hour before they decided to go back to the Gryffindor tower. Amazingly, Hermione's mind was regret and worry free. Being with Sirius was all that really mattered to her in this time. It was the break that she had needed.

Sirius finally said, "Maybe we should wait to tell anyone about this until Christmas break."

"I agree. It is a bit sudden. We'll tell everyone at James' house."

Sirius smiled at her cute face. He gave her one last gentle kiss before they went up to their separate rooms. Hermione finally felt confident in her heart. Maybe she would follow it for a while and let her mind rest.


	9. Chapter 9

My deepest apologies for taking so long to update. As a peace offering, I will post another new chapter tomorrow. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Warning: it starts to get a little bit mature toward the end.

Chapter 9

It was hard for Hermione to get used to: having someone to sneak off and make out with, having someone that would walk up behind her and wrap his arms around her when nobody was looking, having a wonderful little secret that made them both smile like idiots anytime they looked at each other. She loved the way Sirius made her feel, and she was so happy that she had finally let her reservations go. Surprisingly, James, Remus, and Lily were none the wiser to Hermione and Sirius' escapades. The couple had snuck off to be alone at least a hundred times in the first three weeks of December. They were terrified that their friends would accidentally find out and be angry that it had been kept a secret, but they needed it to be a secret for just a little while longer. Hermione couldn't deal with the repetitive explanations of how it happened just yet, and she couldn't deal with Lily's need for every detail of the relationship. Sirius couldn't bear the thought of James comparing their two girlfriends or their two relationships. He also expected that Remus would threaten him to be good to Hermione and act like he knows her so much better than Sirius.

"You're eyes are gorgeous," Sirius whispered to her while he twirled one of her curls around his finger. They sat hidden in a back corner of the library.

"My eyes are plain brown, Sirius."

"No they're not. They're a soft brown like honey, and when I look into them, I see so many things about you. I learn things through your eyes."

She gave him a soft smile and a kiss on the cheek. "You're so kind."

"How much longer before they notice we're gone?" he asked.

"Probably a few minutes," she answered in a somber voice.

He pulled her in for one last passionate kiss and let his hands run over her sweater and across her breast. She let out a tiny gasp as he held her breasts in his hands. She let him knead them for a few moments before she broke the kiss. "Sirius, we can't get caught up. We have to go back before they get suspicious."

"Okay, okay."

As they made their way to the Gryffindor common room, they formulated their plan for telling the others. "I say we tell them one at a time. It will be easier to handle that way," Sirius suggested.

"But if we do it that way, we run the risk of someone getting told before we can get to them. What if we tell James, and then he just tells everyone else without giving us a chance to explain. We need to just have everyone in the sitting room, Charlus and Dorea included, and simply say that we're mad for each other and we want to be together even if our time is limited."

"Oh, we're mad for each other, are we?" he joked as he wiggled his eyebrows at her.

She stopped in the hallway and turned to him. "I am mad for you, Sirius Black."

"I'm mad for you too, Hermione."

"Hey guys! Where have you two been?" James hollered from across the common room as the pair came through the portrait hole.

"Hermione was helping me with my charms paper," Sirius replied quickly.

They settled down into empty chairs by the fire. "Did you hear what happened?" Lily asked. Sirius and Hermione both raised their eyebrows. "Dumbledore expelled Crabbe and Goyle. They were caught performing some extremely dark magic."

"I don't see how Dumbledore is going to fix a war by expelling a couple of students," Sirius remarked.

Hermione frowned at him. "Dumbledore seems to be under a lot of stress. I'm sure he's dealing with the situation in the best way he can."

"I just don't think Crabbe and Goyle really care about getting an education, is all."

Remus jumped in to help Hermione. "By expelling them, Dumbledore has made an example. He has shown everyone that he will not stand for the use of dark magic under any circumstances, and there are certain individuals that do value their education and might stop their use of dark magic in order to keep it." They all knew he was talking about Snape.

James said, "Dumbledore is far wiser than any of us will ever be. He has a plan, and it's probably a damn good one. We have to have faith and remain loyal to those who do good, Sirius."

Sirius bowed his head for a moment, embarrassed that he had been so quick to criticize. "You guys are right. I'm sorry." He looked at his secret girlfriend and forgot for a moment that the others didn't know yet. "Will you forgive me Hermione?"

"Of course, Sirius." Then, while his head was still lost, he leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips. Time seemed to freeze as Hermione pulled away quickly and the other three stared at them.

"What is going on?!" James exclaimed.

Remus contemplated them for a moment with narrow eyes and then said, "They're together… and from the looks of it, it's been that way for a while now."

Hermione and Sirius remained speechless.

Lily's face was turning red with anger. "So that's why you two always seem to disappear at the same time! You've been hooking up?!"

"Well, we haven't quite gotten to the hooking up yet," Sirius finally said.

Remus snorted and Hermione said "Sirius!" with a furious tone to her voice.

"How long has this been going on?" James asked.

"Three weeks," Sirius answered quietly.

"You've kept this a secret from us for three weeks?" Remus sounded more disappointed than angry. He looked to Hermione, hurt etched across his face.

"I wanted to tell you Remus, but Sirius and I just needed time to get used to this before it was made into such a big deal. I'm sorry."

Sirius was more concerned with his best friend's reaction. "James, please don't be mad at me, mate. You know how fragile things can be at the start of a relationship. It was the same way with you and Lily."

"Don't blame me for your secret keeping, Sirius," Lily snapped. She was obviously the angriest out of any of them, and Hermione couldn't figure out why. James saw this too and decided to take action.

"Lily, do you want to go for a walk with me?" he asked kindly.

She looked reluctant to go but also obviously did not want to be around Hermione and Sirius at the moment. When James and Lily had left the common room, Hermione turned on Sirius. "Sirius, I can't believe you. How was it so hard to keep the secret? We only had one more week until break. This is absolutely ridiculous!"

He started to argue back that it wasn't entirely his fault, but she interrupted him. "And that comment about us not hooking up yet, well it definitely won't be happening if you keep that attitude about it."

Remus interjected, "Guys! I'm still here. Could you save your lovers' quarrel for another time?"

"Sorry," they both said.

After that, Hermione read by the fire while Remus and Sirius played chess. They all seemed to be getting along quite well, but Hermione didn't miss Remus' quietness, and she sensed that he hadn't quite forgiven her and Sirius just yet.

For four days Lily barely spoke to Hermione. Finally, Hermione confronted her about it one night before bed. She avoided Hermione's questions at first but eventually broke down and explained her anger.

Lily was still wounded from her friendship with Severus. She had such a close friend that turned out to be keeping major secrets, and it was devastating for her when she finally realized what Snape and his Slytherin friends were up to. Since her split with Severus, she hadn't really made any close friends. She was very close to James, but the dynamic of their relationship was very different. When she and Hermione had begun to spend time together, she felt that Hermione was finally the person that Lily could trust and confide in. To find out that another very close friend was keeping secrets was just too much for Lily. It wasn't entirely Hermione's fault, but Lily blamed her for bringing back such awful memories.

Hermione understood why Lily was holding onto resentment, but she hated all the tension within their friend group. After talking it out and Hermione apologizing repeatedly, the two women were on good terms again. Hermione finished the term with top marks in all her classes. She enjoyed watching Remus and Lily squirm when she got higher grades than them.

Before Hermione left for winter break, she had worked with Dumbledore to destroy yet another Horcrux. This time, they went after the locket, and they figured out a way to get past the potion and inferri without much damage. With two horcuxes destroyed, Hermione felt that she could actually relax with her friends and boyfriend over the break.

Since the cat was out of the bag about her relationship with Sirius, they decided to get a compartment alone on their train ride to London. Hermione had quickly forgiven him for revealing their secret (and for the remark about their sex life), but the comment he had made still made her a bit uneasy. Hermione was still a virgin after all, and she wondered how much long Sirius would keep his patience with her. She figured he had probably had sex with plenty of girls. He probably lost his virginity no later than fourth year. However, his experience hadn't stopped him from being perfectly gentle with Hermione, and she hope it would remain that way even if she never had sex with him before she was due to leave the past.

Because they were all alone with the curtains drawn on their compartment, Hermione was feeling a bit brave and let Sirius take things a little farther than they had yet to go. When his hand dipped below the waist of her pants, her breath hitched, but she allowed him to continue. His fingers made her skin tingle as they slowly continued south. Sirius smiled at her when he felt how wet she was. She blushed, embarrassed for him to know that he was already making her come undone in such a way. He began to rub her clit in a circular motion, and Hermione couldn't catch her breath. Of course she had done this to herself a few times, but having such a handsome man do it to her was something else entirely. Finally, he dipped his index finger into her tight pussy, and Hermione had to bite his shoulder to keep from moaning too loud. She could tell that Sirius was thoroughly enjoying making her feel this way. He pumped his finger in and out of her, rubbed her clit, and then added another finger. Hermione's pleasure was building fast. She was losing control. Sirius sucked on her neck as he pushed his fingers in even harder. With a muffled cry, Hermione had a far more powerful orgasm than she had ever given herself. Her entire body convulsed, and then she came back down. Her face was flushed and her hair a mess. She felt embarrassed when she finally looked into Sirius' eyes, but he gave her a reassuring smile.

"Merlin, you look stunning when you cum, Hermione."

"That was amazing, Sirius."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. Hopefully, we can do a whole lot more of that over the break?"

"I think I'd be okay with that… you might have to tell me what I can do to make you enjoy yourself as much as I just did."

He looked at her questioningly. "Hermione, you don't have to do anything that you're not entirely comfortable with."

"I know that, but I want to make you feel good, Sirius."

"Well, let's worry about that another time, love. We're almost to King's Cross."

Right as he said that, a knock came on their compartment door, and Remus, James, and Lily walked in.

Sirius and Hermione smirked at each other as they both thought about what their friends might have seen if they showed up five minutes earlier.


	10. Chapter 10

As promised, two chapters two days in a row. I really appreciate all my fallows, favorites, and reviews. I've still got a long way to go with this story, so it's good to get reassurance that people are still interested in reading it. I hope all of my lovely readers enjoy this new chapter. It's been my favorite one to write.

Chapter 10

"Oh! We are so happy to see you all!" Dorea shouted as soon as she saw her sons and their friends making their way across the train station. She pulled James and Sirius in for a hug at the same time. They held on for a moment but both got embarrassed and pulled away. Next, she pulled Remus in for a hug. He acted comforted rather than embarrassed by the gesture.

"Lily! I'm so glad you get to spend the first week with us. Come here," she said as she surprised Lily with a hug. Finally she looked to Hermione.

Dorea's eyes started to water as she said, "I'm glad my other son has someone to make him happy now too."

Hermione was flabbergasted, and Sirius exclaimed, "Mum! How could you possibly now about that already."

"Don't you worry about where I get my information, Sirius Black. Just know that I always know more about you boys than you think I do." By that point James and Sirius were mortified.

Charlus finally spoke after a round of handshakes with the teens. "Still haven't made good with Peter, I presume."

"I don't think we will be, Dad," James answered.

"He's become friends with the wrong sort, if you know what I mean," Sirius added.

Charlus and Dorea both grew worried looks on their faces. "Well," Dorea finally said, "we better get you lot home. I'm sure you're all exhausted from the long journey."

"Yeah, I think Hermione is absolutely spent," Sirius said with a laugh. Hermione blushed, but nobody else got the joke and didn't bother to ask.

Lily, Remus, and James were only staying at the Potters' house for the first week of winter break. After that, James and Lily were going to stay with Lily's family, and Remus was going home to see his parents. That meant that Sirius and Hermione would be the only ones at the Potter estate with Charlus and Dorea for an entire week. Hermione desperately hoped that that wouldn't make things awkward.

When they arrived at the house, Dorea prepared a nice meal for them. Lily and Hermione went up to Hermione's attic room to get settled in. When they came back down a couple of hours later to check on the boys, they immediately regretted leaving them alone for so long. They found them on Sirius' bedroom floor, huddled around a collection of various wizard liquors.

Hermione groaned, "Oh no."

"Where did you even get all that?" Lily asked.

"Don't you even worry about that, you sexy woman," James replied.

"How do you guys have the energy to drink tonight?" Hermione questioned.

"We're up for alcohol anytime, love. You should know that by now," Sirius said.

Both women rolled their eyes. "You're mother is going to kill all of us if she finds out," Lily concluded.

"I've already warned them of that," Remus answered, "and they don't seem to care."

An hour later they were all still sat in the floor but with much more alcohol in their systems. They were debating over which game to play. It was a tossup between Truth or Dare, Never Have I Ever, and Spin the Bottle.

Remus exclaimed, "I do not want to end up kissing Prongs or Padfoot, so I don't think spin the bottle is a strong option."

"You didn't have a problem with kissing James the last time you were drunk, Moony," Sirius pointed out. Hermione burst out in a fit of giggles. The alcohol had made her even happier than she had already been.

Lily said with a smirk, "I think Truth or Dare is the best choice. There are still things we don't know about each other. And I'd also like to know how far Sirius will go in order to not back down from a dare."

"I second that!" James cried.

They decided to let Lily go first. She turned to Remus and asked "Truth of Dare." Remus obviously picked dare because Lily still did not know about the whole werewolf thing, and he certainly did not want that coming up on a drunken night. Lily dared him to run downstairs at fool speed and grab the first piece of food he could find without raising any questions from Charlus and Dorea. They all watched him do it from the top of the stairs, and he succeeded. Remus asked Hermione about her guilty pleasure when she picked truth. Hermione dared Sirius to lick Remus' foot, and Sirius dared James to strip. James became panicked at the dare because Lily had not seen him completely naked yet, but when they all glanced at Lily, she was sound asleep. The game continued for quite some time. Remus eventually passed out, followed by James. When it was only Hermione and Sirius still awake, they looked to each other and smiled.

Sirius pulled Hermione over to lie down next to him. "Looks like I get the last turn," he said. "Truth or dare, Hermione?"

She chose truth, just like she had every other time that night.

"Did you really come here from America, or has that been a lie all along?"

She wasn't sure why the game had so much power over her, but she felt that she could not lie in the situation. Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was that Sirius was the one asking. She tried to form the words on her lips _Of course it wasn't a lie Sirius. Of course I'm from America_. However, she quietly said, "No, I'm not from America, Sirius. It was a lie."

He wasn't surprised at all by the answer. She figured he had been suspicious of her all along. "Then where are you from, Hermione Granger."

She remained quiet for a very long time. Afraid to speak. Afraid to breathe. Should she tell him the truth? Or should she simply make up another lie? Her fuzzy thoughts swarmed and her head was spinning. Finally, she formulated an answer. "That's a question for another time. Goodnight, Sirius." She drifted off to sleep before he could say anything else.

The entire week that James, Lily, and Remus were still there, Hermione avoided Sirius as much as she possibly could. She gave him quick kisses and sat by him at meals, but she fought against his every attempt to get her alone. She knew he remembered he confession when they had been drunk. She could tell by the way he looked at her that he wanted to ask her so many questions. He was just as determined to interrogate her as she was to avoid him. Remus could tell that there was something funny going on between the two. On the last day before the three left, Remus had a private chat with Hermione.

"What's going on with you two? I don't want to leave you here alone with him if you're not getting along."

"We're not fighting, Remus. I'm just an idiot and made things a little bit complicated for myself."

"What do you mean?"

"I accidently told him a few things about my mission when we were all drunk. They were some huge details that nobody should know about. Unfortunately, he remembers the conversation, and now he has all these questions for me. I've simply been avoiding him until I can figure out how to explain myself."

"Wow. Well if you need me at all this next week, send an owl right away, Hermione."

"I know, Remus… and thank you for caring so much."

The first day that they were gone, Hermione found some of Fred and George's puking pastils in her purse and ate them to make herself sick. That ensured that Dorea was in and out of Hermione's room all day to care for her, and Sirius never got to see her for more than a few minutes. The next day, however, Hermione had no idea of how to avoid him. He knocked on her door at ten in the morning and asked her to join him on a walk outside. Hermione gathered up her courage and went with him.

"Would you like a chance to explain, or do you want me to immediately start asking questions?" he said calmly as soon as they were out the front door of the house.

She swallowed hard and then started, "Sirius, I never meant to tell you what I did. I'm sorry that I've been lying to everyone, but it is important that certain things remain top secret in order for my mission her to work. I can't tell you where I'm really from. It could ruin everything."

"Can you tell me what your mission entails?"

"I can't, Sirius. I'm sorry."

"Damnit, Hermione. How am I supposed to know what's real and what's just another lie for the sake of some mysterious mission?! Is our relationship real, or is that just something you have to endure in order to complete the job you came here to do?"

Hermione was crying now. She didn't mean for Sirius to take the secrets so badly. "Sirius, I thought we agreed from the start that we would respect each other's secrets."

"That was before we really knew each other, Hermione, before we were really close… You can't keep me out forever."

"It won't be forever, Sirius, because I will be leaving soon anyway."

Sirius was crying too; tears of frustration streamed down his face. "You won't even tell me why you have to leave. You know how unfair that is!"

"You're making this so hard, Sirius! I told you from the beginning that a relationship with me would only cause you pain. Why did you pursue me if you couldn't handle it?!"

"… because I'm in love with you, Hermione."

She looked into his sad eyes for a long moment and then whispered, "I love you too, Sirius, but that doesn't mean that I can tell you everything about my past and my future."

"If you loved me, then you would trust me with anything. You would let me have your deepest secrets and not be afraid of what I might do with them, Hermione."

"Sirius," she begged him, "please see that love does not always equal trust. I care for you, want to spend every second with you, and wish for you to have the best possible life, but I'm keeping you in the dark for your own good."

"Oh, don't even start with that 'for your own good' bullshit. How could you possibly have my best interests at heart when you won't even communicate with me?"

Hermione was grasping on to any measly argument she could find. "You couldn't even believe me if I told you the truth. Honestly, Sirius. You would think I was crazy."

"You're crazy for thinking that I wouldn't believe you."

"You would be mad at me. It's not something that you would be able to take easily."

"You're made for thinking I could ever be truly mad at you."

"You would demand so many things from me that I couldn't do, Sirius."

"I would never demand anything from you, Hermione," he said softly as he walked up to her and kissed her on the lips. "Now," he said with a small grin, "I demand that you just tell me already, and we can figure out where to go from there."

Hermione's brain thought of everything at once. She thought of Harry and Ron, of her promise to Dumbledore, of all the ways that she could be messing up time by simply telling Sirius the truth. Then, she thought of the kiss she had with Sirius on the first of December at the top of the astronomy tower. At once, Hermione thought of nothing.

"I came here from the future, Sirius. I traveled through time. I'm from the year 1996. My mission entails saving a whole lot of lives and maybe even saving with world as we know it."

Sirius eyes were big and his eyebrows were high on his forehead. Without saying another word, he lead her back into the house, up the stairs to her attic room, and over to the bed. "I love you, Hermione Granger," he said, "will you please let me make love to you so that I can show you how not mad I am about what you just told me?"

Hermione lay back on the bed and burst out laughing. After a moment, she sobered up and said, "Yes, Sirius. Make love to me."


	11. Chapter 11

I am on a roll this week! Unfortunately, I probably won't update again until next weekend. I have so many term papers coming up . Warning: The first half of this chapter is mature sexual content.

Chapter 11

"Yes, Sirius. Make love to me."

He looked at her curiously. "Are you sure, Hermione? I don't want to pressure you into anything?"

"You're not pressuring me, Sirius. I love you so much, and I want to do this with you. I know you will protect my heart and my pride. You're the only one I would ever want to do this with."

He lay down on the bed next to her. A million years seemed to go by as he leaned in towards her. She longed for his lips, and he seemed to be taking his sweet time. When their lips finally met, Hermione felt herself tremble. She couldn't tell if it was from her excitement or her nervousness. Once they were kissing, Sirius wasted no time taking things to the next level. He pushed his hands up underneath Hermione's sweater and quickly made his way to her bra. He traced his fingers across the soft lace and played with the tiny bow in the center. Then, he reached around her back and unhooked her bra with one swift motion.

"Do you want to take this off?" he whispered as he tugged at her sweater. She sat up, hesitated for a moment, and then pulled her sweater up over her head. Her bra came with it since it was already unhooked. Sirius sat up too and was going to kiss her again, but she stopped him.

"You have to take yours off too," she said with a smirk.

He chuckled. "Not a problem." His cockiness seeped into his voice, and he quickly pulled his shirt off and flung it onto the floor. Hermione tried not to feel awkward as she stared at his perfect chest and stomach. His torso wasn't rock solid, but his muscles were slightly defined, and he was hairless except for the small trail of black hair that started just beneath his belly button and disappeared into his pants. Because she was distracted by his body, Sirius surprised her when his mouth was suddenly around her left nipple. She let out a sigh as he flicked it with his tongue.

As Sirius was making her feel all these amazing things, Hermione couldn't quite figure out what to do with her hands. First, she had her arms simply at her sides, but that seemed too passive and like she wasn't enjoying it. Then, she tried holding onto Sirius' neck, but that wasn't very comfortable for her. Finally, she rested them on his thighs and bravely approached the place she was most afraid to go. He had moved on to her right nipple by the time he felt her small hand rubbing against him in the most perfect place. He pulled away from her chest and looked into her eyes. "I love you so much, Hermione."

"I love you too, Sirius."

They kissed passionately, and Sirius moved his attention to Hermione's crotch. He laid her back on the bad, and hovered over her. His fingers worked to unbutton her pants. She shivered under his touch. He slid her jeans off, leaving her in only a simple pair of lace underwear. Sirius kissed across her stomach, gradually moving south. His lips stopped just above her waistline.

"Are you still doing okay up there?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," she murmured and was embarrassed at how breathy it sounded.

He hooked his index fingers in each side of the band and slid them down. "Don't worry, I know," he said, "I have to take mine off too."

She giggled as he got off the bed for a moment to stand up and slide his pants down. Hermione was somehow not surprised to find that he wore boxer briefs. They were all black except for the thin white waistband. "These too?" he asked.

She nodded her head. He pulled his underwear off, and Hermione panicked because she didn't know where to look. Should I stare at it, or should I avoid looking at it? She decided on a quick glance and then looked to Sirius with a smile. After casting a contraception spell, he got on the bed again and picked up where he left off: with his lips on her lower stomach.

"Hermione, I want you to completely relax, okay? I want you to thoroughly enjoy this."

"Okay," she whispered.

When he kissed the outer lips of her vagina, Hermione thought her head might split from the intensity of the sensation. She was going crazy. Sirius kissed all around the area before he parted her with his fingers and sucked her clit with his perfect lips. He put one finger in and pumped as his tongue and lips worked wonders. Hermione was moaning so loudly that she was thankful they were in the attic. She couldn't help but jerk her hips to meet the rhythm of Sirius' tongue and finger. She blurted out a series of "yes" "Merlin!" "don't stop" and "oh yeah" before she knew she was about to reach her climax. Sirius pumped and licked faster once he could tell that she was close. Suddenly, she was seeing stars. She cried out even louder as her body jerked and her heart raced.

Before she had barely recovered, Sirius was hovering over her. "Are you ready?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes. I want to feel you inside of me, Sirius."

He grinned at her dirty talk and warned her of the pain. "You can tell me to stop at any time."

"I know. Just do it already."

As his large cock slid into her slowly, she flinched. Even though she expected it to her a little, the pain still caught her off guard. It was a weird pain. She felt that she was being stretched; there was a barrier that was impossible to break. She almost told Sirius to stop, but the wall finally crumpled and he was through. Feeling his entire length inside of her made Hermione gasp even more than the pain did. He remained relatively still until he made sure that she was okay. Then, he began to thrust slowly.

"This is amazing, Sirius," she whispered hotly into his ear. He leaned back a bit and reached down to use his thumb to play with her clit. All of the stimulation was too much for Hermione to take so soon after cumming. She felt her second orgasm build up quick and warned Sirius that it was about to happen.

"Go ahead, love. I'm right behind you."

Hermione cried out once again as she came, and Sirius shook as he thrust even harder and came inside of her. He lowered himself gently against her, trying not to crush her with his weight. They lay like that for a few moments before he pulled out and collapsed on the bed next to her. He brushed the hair out of her face, caressed her cheek, and pulled her close for a cuddle. Eventually, they fell asleep like that.

They didn't wake up until Dorea was hollering up the stairs that it was dinner time. Hermione and Sirius were both startled awake and feared that Dorea would come into Hermione's room. Luckily, they heard her footsteps getting further away. They rushed to put their clothes back on, and Sirius went downstairs first. Hermione took a moment to collect herself, taking deep breaths and combing through her hair with her fingers, and then she also went downstairs.

At the dinner table, Dorea seemed to be very suspicious of the couple. "What have you two been doing all day?"

"Hermione was teaching me some new hexes?"

"For what would you need new hexes?"

Sirius knew that his foster mother was trying to weasel a confession out of him, but he was too quick for her interrogations. He joked it off. "I've got to have something new to use on James when I see him again."

Charlus chuckled, and Dorea rolled her eyes. After that, she gave up on questioning the pair. Once dinner was over, Hermione went into the library to find some new books to read. A few moments later, Charlus joined her. "Hello sir. Dinner was very nice."

"Oh, that was all Dorea. If the meals were left up to me, I'm afraid we might have starved by now."

Hermione laughed. Then she commented, "I bet you're missing James. It's strange that he's not here for a whole week."

"Yeah. I suppose that's just what comes with finding a mate. Your life becomes focused around him or her rather than around family or school or friends. Not that that's a bad thing, of course. That's just the way it is."

"I agree."

"So, since we're on the subject of relationships, I'd like to ask about you and Sirius."

"What about us?"

"Well, Dorea is delighted because of how happy Sirius has been as of late, but I must be honest, there is something deeply mysterious about you. I'm not sure that you are a safe person for Sirius to give his heart to and put his trust in."

"Dumbledore trusts me. Isn't that enough?"

"I just don't think Sirius fully sees what he is getting into."

"I think he does, actually. Since the break, we've become quite clear with each other about a few things."

"Is that so?"

"You have nothing to worry about, Charlus," she said just before she turned and left the library.

That night, after Charlus and Dorea were sound asleep. Sirius crept into Hermione's room and got in bed with her.

"What took you so long?" she whispered.

"I had to make sure that they were actually asleep. Sometimes they stay up late reading." Then, he wrapped his arm around her stomach from behind and kissed the side of her neck. "I'm ready for my bedtime story, my dear time-traveling girlfriend."

She sighed but agreed to tell him as much as she possibly could about coming to 1977 from the future. "This war that we're in with Voldemort right now, it's referred to as the first war. At the end of the first war, everyone thought that Voldemort was killed and that it was all over. Somehow, he managed to survive and bide his time. Thirteen years later, he rose again and started the second war."

Surprisingly, Sirius kept a straight face, not showing any of his thoughts on the matter. "How old were you, Hermione? When he rose again?"

"I was fourteen. It's been three years that the forces of good and evil have been clashing, and my friends and I are working on a way to take down Voldemort without brute force."

"By friends do you mean Ron and Harry that you spoke of before?"

"Yes. Harry is kind of important in the war, and since Ron and I help Harry with everything he does, we are also kind of important in the war."

"So did you come here to stop the second war from happening? To make sure Voldemort dies the first time?"

"Not originally, no. At first, I came here to gather information on what Voldemort was doing and how he schemed during the first war in order to use that against him in the second war. Also… I needed a break."

"What do you mean?"

"Time travel works in a way that if I came back in time and spent years here, I could still go back to the same moment I left and no time would have passed. I could spend a while in the past and let my brain have a little bit of peace from the constant threat of Voldemort. Then, I could go back when I'm well relaxed and have gathered intelligence."

"I see. So you said that that was your original plan. Does that mean that you've changed it since?"

"Yes. Being with everyone here in the past has made me realize how much good I can do and how many lives I can save. I couldn't bear to return to the future without making a difference here in the past. Dumbledore argued against my meddling with time at first, but I convinced him that it was for the better."

"Hermione Granger: Time Traveler, Savior of the Wizarding World."

Hermione snorted at his lame joke. Sirius changed the subject slightly.

"So what are your friends' last names?"

"I can't tell you that."

"… they're the kids of someone I know, aren't they?"

"Maybe, maybe not. You won't get that information from me, Sirius."

"One of them is not my kid, is it?" he asked, horrified.

"No, the charming Sirius Black has not had children by 1996."

"Really?" he said, almost saddened by the thought. Then he realized something else. "SO you know me when I'm older? You had already met me before you came here?"

"Yeah, I first met you when I was thirteen. I saw you quite often because you were in the Order."

"Have I aged well?"

Hermione blushed. "You're quite handsome, even as an older man."

"You didn't picture me like that when we were having sex, did you?"

"Sirius?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up."

They dozed off without saying another word about Hermione's past in the future.


	12. Chapter 12

This chapter isn't quite as exciting as the other two, but I hope you still enjoy. The war storyline is more important here rather than just the Sirius/Hermione storyline. Also, go to .com to read replies to my reviews and get extra info about this story. Thank you to all my 77 followers. I am so happy that this story is doing well!

Chapter 12

"Are you happy it's the new year, Hermione?"

"Of course, 1978, how promising," Hermione answered James with a smile.

Sirius smirked at her as he tossed her luggage over. They were unloading the train at Hogsmeade, about to take the carriages up to the school grounds.

"How did you two celebrate the new year?" Remus asked, and Sirius' smirk grew into a full-fledged grin. Hermione gave him a look of warning to make sure he didn't start telling the story of their very steamy New Year.

"Nothing exciting, really. We stayed in, sat by the fire, talked. That's about it."

"Knowing Padfoot, I'm sure there is much to the story you're not telling us," James joked.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "That's the entire story, as far as your concerned, James Potter."

Sirius finally jumped in, "What about you and Lily? How to you celebrate New Year's, Jamesey-poo?" He winked at his best friend.

"Lily and I did the same wonderful thing that we've been doing for some time now, and I'm not to speak of it with anyone. Everyone raised their eyebrows. Just at that moment, Lily caught up with them.

"What are you lot so shocked about? What's going on?"

"Nothing, dear," James assured her, and the rest rolled their eyes.

The carriage ride was quiet. Sirius held Hermione's hand in his lap. His thumb drew circles on her palm, and the sensation made her want to fall safe asleep. Rain fell on the grounds, and the sky was dark. It seemed a dreary way to start the new term, but Hermione found peace in the soft pattering of the raindrops and the rooftop of grey clouds. She thought about the smirk Sirius had given her at her comment about the new year. It felt so comforting to have someone understand even the littlest things about her being in a foreign time. 1978 didn't feel like a promising year; it didn't feel like a hopeful future. It was still the past to Hermione. Some events might change on the timeline, but much was sure to stay the same. How could she wish for a happy year with Sirius and her new friends when she would have to be leaving soon enough? Now that Sirius knew the truth, a small weight had been lifted off Hermione's chest. However, the closeness that her trust had created between them was making the thought of her departure ever more depressing.

The carriages finally arrived at the gates, and the group of five got out together. Sirius held onto Hermione's hand for the entire walk up to the school. He seemed a bit sad.

"What's wrong, Sirius?" she asked softly so the others wouldn't listen in.

"I'm just going to miss you, that's all."

"When I leave?"

"No, tonight, when we have to sleep in separate beds again," he said very seriously.

She burst out laughing. "That's what has got your knickers in a bunch, is it?"

"I don't see what's so funny about that, Locks."

"You're just heartbreakingly sweet, Sirius. It's too much for me," she gave him a full smile, one filled with joy and admiration and love.

He returned the smile and then turned to Lily. "How did James do with the parents, Lily?"

"Could have been worse… could have been better."

"Uh oh, sounds like Padfoot made a fool of himself again," Remus joked.

Everyone was exhausted from the journey back, and they all went off to bed quickly except for Remus and Hermione who stayed in the common room to read for a bit. Sirius shared an exaggerated goodbye with Hermione, whining about having a cold lonely night without her by his side. Finally, James put a stop to it. "If you don't shut up already, I'll write mum a letter right now telling her that you slept in Hermione's bed every single night that you were home," he said. That shut Sirius up instantly. He gave Hermione one final kiss and went off to bed.

There were only a few moments of silent reading before Remus began his interrogation. "I assume you two resolved your issues that you were having just before we left you at the Potter Estate."

"You are correct, Remus."

"And how did you get a curious Sirius to stop hounding you?"

"… I told him the truth. I gave him what he wanted. I'm trusting him with my life, Remus. Do you think I am right to do that?"

"Regardless of his jokes and disregard for authority, Sirius is a very good man, Hermione. You two seem to be a s thick as thieves since we've seen you again. That alone should prove that you made the right choice."

"If you believe so, why don't you seem very happy about it?"

"I suppose I'm being selfish. I consider you my best friend these days, Hermione. I guess I'm just jealous that you chose to share something with him that you did not share with me."

"Moony, I trust you and Sirius both equally. The only reason I made a decision to tell Sirius was that he put me between a rock and a hard place. If I did not tell him, I would have lost him. I'm hoping you never put me in that position on purpose, Moony, but if you do I will tell you everything that I told Sirius.

Remus was silent for a moment.

"What is it?"

"You called me Moony."  
"Did I? I didn't even notice."

"Yeah. You usually only ever call me Remus. It's nice to know that you finally feel like a part of this group, Hermione."

"I do, Remus. I'm so glad to have you as best during these times."

"Me too."

"Do me a favor, will you?"

"What's that?"

"Don't tell Lily that I called you my best friend."

Remus let out a soft chuckle.

Classes the next day were long and uninviting. Apparently, Sirius did not get any sleep, and he took the opportunity to complain about it to anyone that would listen. James and Remus sat behind Hermione in most classes, and throughout the day she heard them whispering over the details of a new prank. At one point Hermione got fed up and turned around in her seat. "Guys, why aren't you listening? This lecture is really important!"

"Ssshhh!" They both answered. She turned back around with a huff, determined not to share her notes with either of them when it came time to do homework. Lily sat on the other side of Hermione and wanted to pass notes during every single class. She demanded all the details of Hermione's first time with Sirius, which Hermione had made the mistake of casually mentioning to her. To appease Lily, Hermione gave her the details, and let Lily vent to her about James as well. As much as Hermione hated to admit it, it was sort of fun to talk about such silly things with a fellow woman that completely understood.

At lunch, the group was surprised to find Severus snape sitting far away from Lucius Malfoy at the slytehrin table. They guessed that the two must have had some sort of fight over the break. Hermione wondered if it had anything to do with Dumbledore's expelling of Crabbe and Goyle. She hoped that Snape was trying to change his ways. When she and Sirius had a moment alone, Sirius asked her, "How would you like to do some snooping tonight?"

"Please tell me that's not what you're calling it now."

"What? No! I'm talking about spying on the Slytherins. I want to find out what the tension is all about."

Hermione was actually thankful for a chance to find out more about what Voldemort and his death eaters were up to. "I'm in."

"Great. Let's meet in the common room at midnight."

"Are we inviting the others?"

"If we have too many people, we'll be sure to get caught. We'll tell them what we find out in the morning."

"You know they'll be furious with us for not bringing them along."

"They won't care once we share with them all the juicy secrets of those blimey death heads."

At five minutes until midnight Hermione sat by the stairs, waiting for Sirius to come down. At midnight Hermione paced, glancing at her watch then glancing at the stairs repeatedly. At five after, Sirius finally appeared.

"You're late, Black."

He pulled her in for a passionate kiss. "Are you going to punish me, love?" he whispered.

"Don't tell me this was all just an excuse for us to sneak off and hook up," she mumbled.

"I mean, that will certainly be a part of it… but we'll get to that after we spy on the Slytherins."

"You wish."

"I do wish," he winked at her, "and you often end up giving into my wishes."

She smirked. "Let's just go before I change my mind about this."

They made it down to the third floor before they heard anyone else in the corridors. They hid behind a suit of armor and watched as three Slytherin fourth years walked by. They quietly followed and planned to somehow sneak into the Slytherin common room after the three students. Hermione wished that she had Harry's invisibility cloak, and then she remembered that James had the cloak in this time. She cursed herself for not asking Sirius to bring it with him. Luckily, Hermione was quite skilled with the disillusionment charm and cast it on herself and Sirius. They easily slipped into the common room behind the oblivious fourth years.

To the two's great pleasure, Snape and Malfoy were in the corner having a heated argument. Hermione and Sirius got closer to listen in.

"You're being stubborn and foolish," Malfoy said.

"I'm simply being devoted and faithful, unlike you, weak Malfoy scum."

"I know when to take the wise path, Severus. I've tried the path you're on, and it got me nowhere. My family would be thoroughly displeased if I got myself expelled."

"This ridiculous school is not important in the Dark Lord's plan," Snape snapped.

"I'm trying to stay on a decent path Severus. Of course I still hate mudbloods, but Tom has a ridiculous plan that's going to get us all killed. It's not hard to see that. How will we benefit by becoming slaves to a merciless man?"

"My master will make you regret all the things that you say. He will win this war, and you will certainly regret the side you have chosen, Malfoy."

"Piss off!" Malfoy said and pushed Snape out of his way. Hermione and Sirius had seen enough. They waited by the common room entrance for another student to walk in or out. One came through soon enough, and they hastily exited. They ran until the fifth floor. Sirius suddenly stopped and pulled Hermione into a broom closet.

"Sirius! What on earth?"

"I heard someone coming. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to startle you."

"It's quite all right, I suppose. Can you believe what we just heard between Snape and Malfoy."

"No, I can't. I was sure that Snape would be the one to chicken out after Dumbledore's threat. He's certainly got more to lose than Malfoy does."

"I'm happy for Lucious, though. Maybe things will be different with his family this time around."

"What do you mean? Did he not leave the death eaters before?"

"No, he was one of Voldemort's most faithful followers, second only to Bellatrix Lestrange—" Hermione clamped her mouth shut, horrified what she had just revealed to Sirius about his cousin.

"That honestly does not surprise me at all. Wicked woman, that one is."

Hermione giggled, relieved that she had not caused any damage between them. She put her arms around Sirius' neck and pulled him in close. "I love you, Sirius Black."

"I love you too, Hermione Granger."

She kissed and bit his neck as her hands fumbled with his trousers. Once she got them undone, she pulled them down with his underwear just enough to reveal his member. He pulled back and grinned at her. She stayed silent and lowered herself down to her knees.

"Merlin, Hermione," Sirius gasped as she licked his head and then took his entire length into her mouth.


	13. Chapter 13

I am so so so so so so so sorry for such a long wait between updates. I've had finals and papers to write while working every minute that I'm not in school. At last, it is summertime. I should have plenty of time to update more frequently now. Also, I have inspiration for a new Sirius/Hermione fic (not a time travel one), and I should have the first chapter of it up later today. Thank you to all my followers who stuck with me through this month-long absence. I hope this chapter is satisfying enough. Enjoy!

Chapter 13

Sirius, Remus, and Hermione sat on the lawn out by the Black Lake. The February air was crisp, but there was no snow on the ground, only dead colorless grass. Hermione was bundled up in a puffy brown coat, and Sirius constantly asked her if she was warm enough as he hugged her and held her freezing hands. They were waiting for James to arrive so that they could discuss what Sirius and Hermione had heard that night in January. Remus and James didn't know much about it yet; Sirius had only told them that they had something important to talk about concerning the Slytherins. Sirius and Hermione had wanted to tell the others sooner, but had been so caught up with schoolwork and with each other that they hadn't found time. Eventually, James came walking up, but to Hermione and Sirius' displeasure, Lily was with him.

"Lily, this is nothing against you," Sirius said kindly, "but I don't think you want to be a part of this conversation."

"Don't try to make my decisions for me, Black."

"Lily, it concerns Severus. Are you sure that you can handle it?" Hermione asked.

Lily was quiet for a moment, and then she said, "Snape is nothing to me anymore. Now what's this all about?"

Hermione looked to Sirius, allowing him to tell the tale. "Guys, Hermione and I suspected that the reason Malfoy and Snape weren't talking anymore was that Snape was afraid to continue with dark magic because he didn't want to be expelled. We figured the two had a little fight about it. A couple of weeks ago, we snuck into the Slytherin dungeons and listened in on a fight between Snape and Malfoy."

"Were you guys right? Did Snape get back out?" James asked.

"No," Hermione said sadly, "it's quite the opposite actually. Malfoy is the one afraid of getting expelled and facing repercussions from his family, and Snape thinks him a coward and a traitor for not remaining devoted to Voldemort."

Lily gasped. "Surely Severus can't be that engrossed in such darkness."

Sirius gave her a comforting pat on the shoulder. "He is, Lily. We could see it in his eyes."

Remus finally spoke. "What else happened after the fight between Snape and Malfoy?"

"Oh..uhh.." Sirius said, "We got out of there pretty quickly and then heard someone coming down a corridor and ended up stuck in a broom closet for a while…"

"And that's about all the detail we need, thanks," James joked.

"You know you'd like all the steaming details of my sex life, Prongs. Don't deny it," Sirius retorted.

When not contemplating what those damned Slytherins were up to, and when not snogging Sirius senseless, Hermione had been racking her brains for what to buy Sirius for a Valentine's Day present. The holiday was in a week, and the two had a romantic date planned of lunch and Hogsmeade with James, Lily, Remus, and Remus' most recent girlfriend and then an evening in the astronomy tower where they had first decided to be together.

The two hadn't exchanged Christmas gifts because they had alone just begun their relationship, but they both agreed that Valentine's Day would be the perfect time to give their first gifts to each other. Finally, she broke down and asked James to help her with the search since he knew Sirius better than anyone. They were at Hogsmeade on a quiet weekend.

"What are you looking to spend on him?" James asked.

"Well obviously I don't want to spend a fortune; that would just be awkward and impractical. But I also want to spend enough to make it special. I don't want to just get him something cheap."

"Is there any sort of inside jokes or anything that holds meaning to your relationship? Like something that he will always remember you by when you do have to leave?"

Hermione got sad for a moment, but then she joked, "Wow! James Potter, when do you get to be such the romantic? Do you wine and dine Lily on a regular basis?"

James got a smug look on his face. "I might…" he mumbled, but said no more.

After thinking it over for a moment, Hermione said, "We do have this little joke between us about time."

"Time? What sort of joke is that?"

"Well it wouldn't be funny to anyone else. And it's hard to explain. Anyway, Sirius would know what I was talking about."

"All right, time it is. Hmmmm… what's a present that has to do with time?"

"What about a watch? Does Sirius like watches?"

"Well he always wears the same watch that he got for his seventeenth. I don't think he needs another wrist watch. You could get him a piece of jewelry that has like a clock on it or something."

"Or an hourglass," Hermione added. "Sirius has his left ear pierced. Do you think he would like it if I bought him an earring?"

"Yeah, I think he would wear that more than any other type of jewelry."

"Awesome! Now we just have to somehow find an hourglass earring."

They went to many shops that always referred them to other shops. They had a few hits on hourglass earrings, but Hermione was having a hard time getting a hit on exactly what she was looking for. Finally, they made their way into an antique store, and Hermione laid her eyes on the exact piece she had been hoping for. She could imagine it in Sirius' ear, with his long black hair tucked behind it and his grin almost reaching all the way to it across his cheek. The salesclerk wrapped the earring in tissue paper and a plain looking box, and Hermione had a giddy look on her face when she thought of what Sirius's reaction might be to the gift.

"What did you get for Lily?" Hermione asked James.

"I got her some very fancy quills that she's been wanting and a couple of books."

"That's lovely. I bet she'll be thrilled."

Valentine's Day started out just as happily as Hermione had hoped. James and Sirius were waiting in the common room when Lily and Hermione came downstairs. The four of them met Remus and his date at the entrance outside the Great Hall. They had a quick breakfast together, and then they began the walk to Hogsmeade. The girls all thought they were headed to the Three Broomsticks, but apparently the boys had something different planned. When they reached the outskirts of the town, the boys lead them on a different path, and they all ended up on top of a giant hill that looked out over a beautiful clearing.

"Now," James said, "you all should know us three enough by now to expect something more exciting than a boring trip to the Three Broomsticks."

"We've had something much more extravagant planned out all along," Sirius piped up.

Lily and Hermione simply rolled their eyes, but Remus' date looked thoroughly confused. Her name was Clarke. Remus gave he a reassuring smile.

"What exactly are we doing, then?" Hermione questioned.

"We, my love, are going to be riding Hypogriffs," Sirius answered.

Hermione went pale. "Sirius, you know I'm afraid of heights. There is no way I'm going to ride a Hypogriff."

The other two girls looked very excited, but Hermione was terrified. She looked out across the field that they were standing above, and she spotted three Hypogriffs munching on grass that she had overlooked before. Why did Sirius think that this would please her?

The other two couples had already began to walk down the hill toward the flighty creatures, but Hermione was motionless, and Sirius walked toward her. "Hermione, I'm so sorry. James and Remus came up with the idea, and I just got caught up in how fun it would be to do this with you. I forgot about summer at the Potters' when you wouldn't fly a broom. Please forgive me."

"It's okay, Sirius. Really. I feel terrible though for ruining your plans."

"We could just go for a stroll instead. I think there is a pond somewhere in the woods over there."

"That sounds nice."

They let the other four know that they would be going off on their own and then left the clearing for a narrow path into the forest. Sirius had his arm around Hermione's waist, and they talked happily the entire way, now that Hermione's nerves had settled.

"Would you like your present now?" Sirius asked her.

"Of course. I have something for you as well."

They exchanged the small boxes they both had for the other opened them at the same time. To Hermione's great surprise, Sirius had purchased a simple necklace with the exact same hourglass charm that was on the earring she got for him. They looked at each other with huge grins. "Looks like we're made for each other, Locks."

"I suppose you're right, Black."

They were quiet for a moment, and then Sirius said, "How can you leave if we're made for each other?"

Hermione instantly grew sad. She'd been in the past for so long, and she knew her time to leave was approaching quickly. She had to go forward and see if the information and help that she had given Dumbledore made any difference to how the war plays out. "Sirius, I have to go back because this is the past to me. It has already happened in my mind."

"Hermione, you've been here long enough to live this year with us. You wake up with new feelings and new thoughts. You make new relationships and discoveries. You have new experiences. You're living your life right now. A year ago, this may have been the past for you, but right now, you're living in the present. Stop running from it."

Hermione looked at him with tears building up in her eyes.

"You have to stop acting like your life is on pause."

"What about my parents? What about Ron and Harry?"

"They'll still exist Hermione. You just might not be close to them in the same way that you are now."

"So I'm supposed to give up my life for this life? You're forcing me to choose the life I've had for less than a year over the life I had for seventeen."

"I'm not forcing you to choose anything. I'm just trying to point out that you already have chosen. The moment you decided to start meddling with the past is the moment that your old life stopped existing. You can go back to the future, but you have no idea what you'll be returning to. How can you be sure that you'll know the same people, have the same friends. It all will be slightly different if not entirely different, and that will drive you crazy knowing what you gave up because you couldn't let yourself just stay here with me."

"I can't be around you right now, Sirius. You're upsetting me, confusing me. I need air, I need space."

"Hermione, I'm sorry. It's Valentine's Day. Can we just forget this little fight."

"I don't think I can Sirius. Everything becomes too complicated when I'm around you. I need to get away."

Sirius furrowed his brows, not sure what she meant by 'get away'.

Hermione somehow sensed that they were far enough away from Hogwarts to be able to apparate. She pushed Sirius' hand off of her shoulder, remembered the three D's, and was gone.

Sirius screamed, "Hermione!" but she had already disappeared. He didn't know where she had gone, but some part of him felt that she would return to the future without coming to see him again. He had pushed her to such a rash decision, and he hated himself for it. Knowing how Hermione's brain worked, he figured that she probably thought it best to sever all ties here and now. How could she do this? How could he have said such awful things to her? How could it already be over, just like that?

Hermione walked down a quiet avenue. She finally came across the cozy house she was searching for. She walked up to the front door, took multiple deep breaths, and performed three sturdy raps on the door. A couple of skinny, well educated looking adults answered the door. Hermione smiled wide and the sight of her parents.

"And who might you be, dear?" her mother asked.


	14. Chapter 14

Yay! Two chapters in two days! So Mr. and Mrs. Granger were never given actual names by J.K., that's why I gave them names that I liked and thought fit them quite well. Also, to any unsure followers, this story still has a long way to go with much more plot and excitement. Stick with me! I just started another Sirius/Hermione story called Better with Age. The first chapter is up and the second one should be up soon. Go check it out! As always, I hope you thoroughly enjoy!

Chapter 14

Hermione went to sleep in her childhood bedroom, except it hadn't become her childhood bedroom yet. She had told her parents that she was an unknown daughter of her late Uncle Thomas. The man died when Hermione was ten. He never married, lived his life as a bachelor. She claimed that her mother had just revealed the identity of her father, and she wanted to get in touch with any relatives.

Her parents kindly accepted her story and offered her a place to stay for a few days during which they would tell her all about the Granger family and take her to some of Thomas' favorite places.

Hermione needed this time to appreciate her parents, to find out if their relationship could be the same, even if they didn't know that she was actually their daughter. Hermione got up the next morning, went down to the kitchen, and ate a blueberry muffin while chatting with her mother. It was so surreal because it was their exact routine every summer morning for many years. As much as she had loved Hogwarts, as much as she had yearned for exciting lessons and meals in the great hall, she cherished those mornings with her mother. Something about the simplicity made her heart ache with affection.

"How did you and your husband meet?" Hermione asked her. She had heard the story a thousand times, but she wondered if her mother would tell it differently now that she didn't know Hermione as a daughter and the meeting of the couple was not all that long ago.

"We met in school, both on the path of dentistry. Henry always got top of the class. It infuriated me. No matter how hard I studied, his marks were better. He always spoke up in classes, having the right answer to every question. I was always one step, one second behind him in everything. I hated him for the longest time. Then, our last semester we had a class, I can't even remember what it was called now, but Henry really struggled with the material. For some reason it really clicked for me. I made the highest grade in the class, and rather than being angry at me, Henry smiled at me and gave me a congratulations. I knew then that he was a good man. At a get together that night, we shared our very first kiss."

"That's a lovely story, Cordelia."

Meanwhile at Hogwarts, Sirius Black was distraught. After Hermione had disappeared, he rejoined his friends and only told them that Hermione had to leave for her mission. He didn't know if she would ever come back. That night he lay awake for hours wondering where she could be, wondering if she even existed in his time anymore or if she had left him for the future. He thought of her soft lips that often curved into a condescending smile when he said stupid things. Sirius thought of her gentle hands that had numerous calluses from vigorously writing notes during class. He thought of her hair, her perfect locks. They had impressed him before anything else about her. Before they were even truly friends, he spent hours thinking about her brown curls, imagining running his fingers through them. How lucky he had been to get to do that every day once they had started dating.

When morning came, Sirius had only achieved one hour of sleep. He felt groggy and miserable. When Remus tried to get him out of bed so they could attend class, Sirius flipped him off and buried his face in the pillow. There was no way Sirius could make himself sit calmly in class when Hermione had left him. What if she never came back? What would he do?

James stayed behind when the other seventh years left for class. "Sirius, mate, I know it's rough, but you can't just drop out of school."

"I'm not dropping out. I just need a few days and then I'll be fine."

"Did she say anything about whether or not she would return?"

"We had a fight, James. She said she needed to get away from me because I made her confused and unable to think."

"Well that's great, Sirius."

"What do you mean, you prick? How is it great that Hermione can't stand to be around me so she just disappears."

"She is obviously coming back. Knowing Hermione, she just needed to be alone so she could consider whatever you two fought about without you talking in her ear every second of every day. I don't think she would have left so suddenly if she wasn't planning on coming back."

Sirius merely sighed, not agreeing nor disagreeing with James' point. He hoped James was right, but at the same time Sirius was hesitant to become hopeful about anything. He stayed in bed until lunch, and then threw on some trousers and a tee-shirt and went down to the kitchens. He kindly asked the house elves for their strongest cup of tea and their most surgery biscuit. They happily obliged. He munched on his food and sipped his drink, still in a depressed state.

Hermione giggled at the sight of her young parents being so goofy together. They had taken a walk to the park that Thomas had often gone to. They brought the couple's dog, an Italian Greyhound named Eleanor. The couple was passing a Frisbee back and forth, laughing at the dog running about madly between them.

"Come Lenny! Let's go down by the duck pond." Cordelia said, and the dog obediently followed her.

"Does it make you sad to think about Thomas, even though you never knew him?" Hermione's father asked her.

"Not really sad, just like I'm missing a piece of me that might never be found."

"Well I hope that we can at least help a little in finding that piece. I know you have your mother, but if you ever need parental figures, Cordelia and I can be that for you."

"Than you. I think what I need more than anything from you is two very good friends. You two aren't all that much older than me. I would love it if we could forget about all these family ties and simply be friends."

"That sounds great, Hermione."

When Hermione laid her head against the pillow in her room that night, she finally gained peace. She enjoyed this new relationship that she could have with her parents. She realized that she no longer needed them to nurture, advise, and protect her. She only needed them to be her friends. If she could still be close to them in this way, she would be happy. As for Harry and Ron, it might be strange at first, but Hermione figured she could handle being their aunt rather than their best friend. It would be fun to watch the two grow up and be idiots together rather than having her to correct all their mistakes. And if she stayed, she could see Harry grow up with two parents and without the weight of Voldemort on his shoulders. She could see the Weasleys have a carefree life without Molly constantly fearing her children's deaths. Hermione wouldn't have to worry about death eaters torturing her parents. She could grow alongside James and Lily and Remus. She could be happy with Sirius. Their relationship could become something real. She could have a life with him, a home with him.

Hermione imagined them all having dinner and drinks together on Friday nights after long days of work. She imagined Lily and James excitedly telling them that Lily was pregnant. She imagined Remus finding someone to truly love because Hermione would force him to see that he was worth loving. Hermione finally saw that her life was more valuable in the seventies than it would ever be if she went back to 1996. She was needed here in many ways. In less than a year she had built a life for herself, a life so precious that she could not give it up.

She spent one more day with Henry and Cordelia, chatting about their vacation plans for the summer. Hermione mentioned that she might have to introduce them to her boyfriend Sirius sometime. They gave her their home phone number so she could keep in touch.

The next day at Hogwarts, Sirius spent out in the cold, sitting next to the Black Lake. He couldn't stop thinking about all the magical moments he had spent there with Hermione. He was making himself miserable, probably making himself sick from the cold. He didn't care. All he cared about was if she would come back to him. Finally, he transformed into his animagus and ran into the forest. Simply running for hours to try to get away from his heartache. Late in the afternoon, he transformed back and made his way back to the castle.

When he reached the Gryffindor common room, Remus and James were both sitting by the fire.

"Hey guys! I'm gonna go take a quick shower, and then I will join you. I'm up for a game of chess if anyone's willing to face me."

"Sounds good, mate," Remus answered. When Sirius walked up the stairs, Remus and James smiled at each other, knowing what he would find in the dormitory.

Sirius opened the door at the very top of the stairs and found a very pretty woman sitting on his bed.

"Hermione!" he ran to her. Practically tackling her with a hug. "Thank Merlin, you came back! I'm sorry about all the things I said. I shouldn't have tried to force you to make a decision."

"Sirius, I'm staying."

"What?"

"I'll stay in this time, with you, forever. I promise."

"You mean it? You won't change your mind?"

"No. My decision is final. I won't go back on my word. You were right when you said that this is my present now, it's not my past. I have important things to do here, and I don't think a time will ever arise when it would be good for me to return to the future. I'll find a way to be close to the people I miss in a different way."

"You have just made me the happiest man, Hermione. I love you so much." He held her in his arms and kissed her on the forehead.

"I love you too, Sirius."

An hour later they lay in Sirius' bed, sweaty and out of breath from all the sexual activity that had just occurred.

"So where did you go to the last few days?"

"I went to see my parents."

"How did that work? They're not even your parents yet."

"I made up some story about me being their long lost neice."

"Wow. Clever."

"Yeah, once I realized that I could still be good friends with them without them being my parents, I became okay with staying in this time."

"That's great, Hermione. I want you to be truly happy here. I didn't want you to stay if you were going to be miserable." She finally looked at him with a grin on her face.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Sirius."

"And you as well, my dear."

"I think it's time I brought you with me when I have one of my talks with Dumbledore."

"Why's that?"

"Well since you know the truth about me, there's no reason you can't help in our plan to defeat Voldemort."

"Awesome! I can't wait to kick some dark lord ass."

"We'll have to keep what we tell you to a minimum. I don't want you knowing the fates of yourself and everyone around you. You're the worst at keeping secrets."

"Hey! I've kept your secret for almost two months now, Locks. I find that to be quite impressive."

"Yeah, yeah. We'll see how long it takes you to accidently let it slip to Remus or James. I give it another month at most."

Sirius clutched his chest right over his heart. "You wound me, woman."


	15. Chapter 15

I hope it doesn't seem like I've been neglecting this story. This chapter is a tiny bit longer than usual, so I hope you all enjoy it. I just need four more followers to reach 100! Also, I appreciate any reviews I can get. Questions, helpful criticism, funny comments: I love it all! So please leave reviews. Love you guys and gals!

Chapter 15

To Hermione's great annoyance, Sirius did manage to let the secret slip in just under a month. It was mid March, almost time for the Easter holidays, and Hermione was relaxing on a bench in the courtyard. Birds were chirping, there was a soft breeze, and Hermione had a new book in hand, flipping through the pages at a leisurely pace. She was only, which hadn't happened often in the past month. Sirius was rarely out of her sight, which neither of them minded, but it was nice to get some peace and quiet. When she and Sirius weren't spending time alone, Hermione often hung out with Remus. She had been neglecting their friendship since Christmas break and had been working hard to get it back on track. This is why Hermione was quite surprised to see Remus Lupin storming up to her with a murderous look on her face.

"Please tell me that he is lying, that he is confused, or that this is just some sort of ridiculous joke!" he shouted at her as she stood up from her bench.

"Remus! What on Earth has got you all stirred up?"

"Don't play ignorant with me, Hermione."

"I'm not _playing_ anything. Just tell me what's got you so mad."

He looked at her with fury in his eyes. "Why does Sirius seem to think that you traveled in time from twenty years in the future?"

Hermione couldn't help that she was not surprised at all by this situation. Of course Sirius couldn't keep his mouth shut!

Remus looked at her, waiting for some sort of confirmation or denial. "Is it true?" he asked quietly.

Hermione could barely look him in the eye when she felt the disappointment in his voice. "It is Remus, but let me explain the whole thing to you."

"Well isn't that just great that you trusted Sirius with this information, but you couldn't trust the werewolf!"

Hermione felt that she had been slapped. "Remus! Keep your voice down about this. If you want to yell at me, we can go somewhere more private."

"I don't really have much more to say to you, Hermione. I just want you to tell me why you trusted him and not me. Then I'm done."

"Remus, it wasn't about who I trusted more. The only reason I told Sirius was that we could not move forward in our relationship without me telling him. I knew that telling him would do some sort of damage to us or to the timeline, but there was no way around it if I wanted to be with him. With you it's different because we could still be the best of friends without you having to know and without me doing more damage than I already have. I'm truly sorry, and I did want to tell you eventually, but I just didn't know when it would be appropriate to share."

"So that's why you have to leave. You're going back to your own time?"

"I'm not leaving."

Remus was angry all over again. "What?! Ever since you got here you've constantly reminded us all not to get too close because you would eventually leave and never see us again. That was all a lie as well?!"

"No! I never lied about that! I was planning on leaving all this time until last month. Do you remember when I disappeared for a few days?"

"Yeah, what's that got to do with anything?"

"Sirius had been on my case since Christmas to commit to staying here in this time. I kept telling him it wasn't practical, wasn't realistic. Finally, we had a huge fight on Valentine's day, and I just needed to get away and figure out what I was going to do. I went to my parents' house, even though they're not my parents yet, and I did a lot of reflecting. After a few days I realized that it would be best for everyone in _both_ times if I just stayed put."

"Permanently? Or just longer than you had originally planned?"

"Permanently. I'm officially a 70s girl. We can be best friends for a very long time, and I can help you find a wife, Remus."

Remus laughed.

"And don't you dare accuse me of not trusting you because of your furry condition ever again, Remus Lupin," Hermione said sternly, but with a smile on her face.

"Yes, ma'am."

The next night they were all out by the Black Lake. James sat on the grass with Lily in his lap. Remus stood by the water, skipping rocks. Sirius sat next to Hermione with his arm holding her firmly against him.

"What are the plans for Easter?" Lily asked.

"Well every is welcome at the Potter estate, as always."

"As tempting as that is, I really need to spend some time with my folks before that forget I exist," Remus joked.

"Well I would love to spend the holidays with you again, James," Lily said happily.

"Hermione and I are staying behind at Hogwarts," Sirius said plainly, and everyone looked at him with shock except for Hermione.

The couple had discussed staying behind a week before. There were many reasons for the decision. First, no matter how much time they got alone, it never felt like enough these days. Second, Dumbledore had given them several tasks to complete when they had spoke to him together the month before, and they believed the holidays to be the perfect opportunity to get those tasks done.

Dumbledore had been shocked when Hermione arrived for one of their scheduled meetings with Sirius in tow. He, of course, was angry with her at first for spilling the secrets of the future with yet another person from the past. However, when she confessed that she and Sirius were in love and that she wanted to stay in this time with him, Dumbledore filled with empathy. He knew what it felt like to love someone that was impossible to have. He advised Hermione that if she felt the relationship was possible and unproblematic, then she should fight for love with all her might. After that, Hermione filled Dumbledore in on all the details she had revealed to Sirius about Voldemort, the war, and the future in general. Dumbledore had described his plan to take Lucius Malfoy under his wing, for he believed the Malfoys to be keeping at least one of Voldemort's horcruxes. He gave Hermione and Sirius specific instructions on how they could help bring Lucius over to the good side. Hermione hoped Dumbledore's plan would work.

As she looked at Sirius face under the moonlight, seeing how dedicated he was to staying behind at the school and helping her save the wizarding world, she felt a burst of pride and compassion and desire and true, unyielding love for the young man.

"We just want to spend the holidays alone," Sirius explained to their three friends," We hope you guys can understand that."

"Of course!" Lily said happily, probably thrilled to get some alone time with James at the Potters' estate.

They all made their way back to the castle at separate times, Sirius and Hermione staying out the latest. When they were alone, Hermione said, "Sirius, we need to talk about how Remus found out my secret."

Sirius kept his eyes on the ground. "I was hoping we could avoid that."

"I'm not mad at you. I just want to know how it happened."

"It was so stupid, really Hermione. Remus was talking about how you act much more progressive and know what you want far better than any other woman around here. Rather than merely mentioning that it's because you're from America, I accidentally said that it's probably because of the time you're from. I tried to backtrack and cover it up somehow, but Remus caught what I said and kept pushing until I told him everything. I'm so so sorry. Will you forgive me?"

She smiled at him. "You were already forgiven. I told you I wasn't mad, Sirius." She lay back in the grass, gazing at the stars. Sirius was still sitting up, and he looked down at her. Resting in the grass beneath him was the most stunning woman he had ever met. Each moment that he spent with her was unbelievable, and he still couldn't believe that he had convinced her to stay with him. He imagined a home with her, a marriage with her, travels with her, and entire life with her. He studied her lips and her curves, her gorgeous hair. He traced her outline with his eyes, and not once did she look away from the stars. He loved her more than he could even understand.

"Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"Please tell me you'll let me make love to you right here, underneath these stars that you can't take your eyes off of."

Her eyes finally turned to him with the slightest hint of a smolder. Sirius grinned and leaned down to capture her lips with his.

When Hermione woke up in her dormitory a week later, she still had a goofy grin on her face from dreaming about that amazing night she and Sirius had shared under the stars. She could still feel the way he had kissed her with so much more passion and fervor than ever before. She could still feel his hands in her hair and on her breasts, his mouth working its way all over her naked body. She could still feel him inside of her. It had been an entire week since they had had enough time alone to do more than share a quick kiss. Hermione was going mad. They had slept together plenty of times since the first time during the winter holidays, but she still couldn't help but be surprised each time by how amazing it was. She and Sirius together were true magic. Hermione felt herself getting hot all over again at the thought of how Sirius looks without any clothes on. She couldn't wait for the castle to empty out that very afternoon. Almost all the students would be going home for Easter, and she would have Sirius Black all to herself. Suddenly, Hermione thought of the most wicked plan. She was going to subtly tease Sirius all morning while their friends were still around and drive him to the point of insanity. Then, when everyone has left and Sirius is expecting to hook up immediately, Hermione planned to disappear. Hermione smirked at herself. Finally, late in the night, when Sirius has already gone to bed, Hermione was going to sneak up to his room and give him a very pleasant surprise. She knew he would be frustrated all day, but when night comes he will be thankful. Hermione once again became aware of what all these dirty thoughts were doing to her. She clenched her thighs as she felt heat and wetness pool in her underwear. She held a pillow over her face and groaned.

When she finally got out of bed, she asked Lily to help her find something extra sexy to wear to breakfast. Lily picked a snug red tee-shirt, a black pencil skirt, see-through tights, and a pair of short heels out of Hermione's wardrobe for her to wear. "He's going to fall over dead as soon as he sees you in this outfit." Lily laughed as she said it, thinking of Sirius Black drooling like a dog.

"I hope it's not too obvious to everyone else what I'm doing."

"I'm sure it will be a little obvious, but if any of the guys call you out on it, just act like you have no clue what they're talking about."

"Okay. Good plan. Thank you so much, Lily," Hermione pulled her in for a hug, "I'm going to miss you so much over the holidays."

"Hermione, it's only one week. You'll be too busy screwing Sirius to miss me."

Hermione felt embarrassed but also giddy at the thought.

As Hermione walked into the Great Hall alongside Lily, she tried to avoid Sirius' eye. She walked right up to their table and slid into the seat right next to him without even giving him a glance. Still without looking at him she said, "Good morning, Sirius."

"Good morning, Locks," he replied, "You look amazing today."

"Yeah, Hermione, what are you all dressed up for?" Remus asked.

"I just wanted to look nice when we see you guys off for the holidays. That's all."

James was looking at Lily, knowing that she obviously knew what Hermione was scheming up.

"How'd you sleep?" Hermione asked Sirius, still not looking directly into his eyes.

"I slept well, and you?"

Hermione put her right hand on his knee. "I've been having this dream, same one, almost every night." As she spoke, her hand slowly crawled closer to a more intimate area. "There's this starry night and a lake and some _very_ interesting things happen." Finally, she cupped his groin in her hand.

"Bloody hell!" Sirius cried out.

Their friends hadn't been paying much attention to them until that point.

"What's wrong?" James asked.

"Nothing," Sirius was quick to answer, but he could barely breathe because Hermione's hand was still firmly holding his cock and ball sac through his trousers. When his friends had went back to their other conversations he turned to Hermione and hissed, "Are you trying to kill me, Hermione?!"

"Of course not," she said with an evil smile, "but you should know that this is only the beginning. You should prepare yourself for a day full of torture."

Sirius gave an almost silent groan when she finally released his package.


End file.
